Lawyer: Revoking ENA`s  license  means taking away its property  rights

ArmInfo. The revocation of the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) company's license, owned by Russian businessman Samvel Karapetyan, who was previously arrested in Yerevan, may have a negative impact on Armenia's investment climate and its international ratings in both the short and long term. Arpine Hovhannisyan, lawyer and former Minister of Justice of Armenia, stated this in her Facebook post.

To support her statement, she clarified that the revocation of the  license is essentially equivalent to deprivation of property rights,  which is a serious legal action requiring compelling evidence. In  this regard, Hovhannisyan noted that Mesrop Mesropyan, Chairman of  the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) of Armenia, had  previously accepted the ENA's reports without objection. This raises  the logical question: why is he now advocating for the revocation of  the ENA'a license without considering alternative measures, such as  imposing a fine?

Regarding the accusations voiced by Romanos Petrosyan, the lawyer  noted that he essentially justifies his actions by claiming that the  previous Commission was inactive, but in fact, the same commission  and its members, including Mesropyan himself, are involved. In this  regard, Hovhannisyan mentiond that revoking a license requires  monitoring, discussions, and the recording of facts that would  justify the decision, which was not done. "Moreover, in this case,  the question arises as to why the PSRC chairperson or the interim  manager did not report the crime earlier, if there are grounds for  doing so. In this case, it raises doubts about the legitimacy of the  regulator's actions," Hovhannisyan noted.

She pointed out that Mesropyan justifies this by claiming that the  previous incidents have nothing to do with him. "That is, the problem  is essentially being shifted unprofessionally onto the Commission by  them," the former minister noted.

The lawyer then touched on the discriminatory approach being taken  against the ENA. In this regard, she stated that, according to  Mesropyan, it is impossible to improve the ENA's performance without  revoking its license. In this regard, she questioned why similar  measures are not being taken against other strategically important  facilities, such as Veolia Jur CJSC, which  management problems are  also evident.  "The same Commission has recorded a reduction in water  supply duration and other issues, but instead of revoking its  license, the company is only receiving fines. Additionally, to  terminate the contract, the government is supposed to rely on the  results of a technical audit, but it ignores these requirements,  relying on fines and reduced investment volumes. Thus, Veolia Jur is  treated much more leniently than ENA," the former minister noted.

Hovhannisyan clarified that today they are faced with a situation  where private owners are subjected to strict measures. "Meanwhile, in  the case of other companies, management is not transferred to another  owner to ensure better management," the lawyer concluded.