ArmInfo. Our doors have always been open for any kind of inspections, which can not cause the suspension of the enterprise. This was January 30 on the fields of the event, timed to present the first national EITI report, said Director of Lydian Armenia in the area of sustainable development Armen Stepanyan.
"But the reality today is such that in the created situation we hope for the earliest possible international examination," he stressed.According to Stepanyan, the suspension of the investment program for the Amulsar deposit will necessarily affect the business image of Armenia. , he stressed.When asked by the journalists about whether the company is considering the possibility of returning its funds through legal proceedings, Stepanyan noted: "All options for this are open, it has been repeatedly mentioned. Everything is possible>.
He recalled that during 2018 the company plans to make additional investments, and by the end of the year Lydian was preparing to start production. At the same time, Stepanyan found it difficult to name the amount of damage caused to the company, noting that it is about several tens of millions of dollars. If this year presents an opportunity, the company, he said, intends to continue construction work.
The company could make serious institutional changes in the extractive industry of Armenia, if it works>, he concluded.Note that the roads leading to the Amulsar deposit are closed by a group of people who oppose the operation of the mine since June 2018. According to representatives of Lydian Armenia, due to the current situation, the company suffered serious damage, moreover, 1,300 people lost their jobs.Recall that Lydian Armenia is a subsidiary of British Lydian International, whose shareholders are also major international institutional investors from the United States, Great Britain, and a number of European countries, including the EBRD. The Amulsar project is the largest industrial project in Armenia today for the development of the Amulsar gold deposit with a total value of $ 370 million. In August 2016, the project for the construction and development of the deposit was launched. Preparatory work has been going on since 2006. The life of the Amulsarsky deposit will be 10 years and 4 months, with an average of 200 thousand ounces of gold (about 10 million tons of ore) planned annually. The stock is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Amulsar deposit is the second largest reserves in Armenia.