Pashinyan: Private investment for Ararat Cement to be secured via  international tender

ArmInfo.Armenia has successfully exported domestic weaponry to the international market this year, as stated by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan  on May 21  campaign rally in the city of Ararat. Confirming Armenia's entry into the global arms market, Pashinyan invited voters to an upcoming  military parade on May 28, noting that a selection of military hardware— including domestically produced equipment—will remain on  display adjacent to Yerevan's Republic Square following the event.

During the rally, the Prime Minister revisited the planned  nationalization of the Ararat Cement plant. He stated that securing  private investors for the facility would be managed through an open,  transparent, and international tender. Pashinyan assured the public  that the state would retain an equity stake in the plant, drawing a  parallel to the state's ownership model in the Zangezur Copper and  Molybdenum Combine.  Condemning the original privatization of the  plant as fraudulent, Pashinyan declared, "This stolen asset will be  returned to the state."

The announcement follows remarks made by the Prime Minister a day  earlier in the Lori region, where he stated that Ararat Cement  (Araratcement CJSC)—currently owned by Gagik Tsarukyan's Multi Group  Concern—will soon undergo nationalization. The government has already  received an official brief from the Prosecutor General's Office  outlining systemic violations discovered in the initial privatization  process.  Characterizing the plant as the "financial backbone" of the  Prosperous Armenia Party leader, Pashinyan asserted that  post-nationalization, the enterprise will become state property,  thereby "liberating" its workforce from Tsarukyan's control.