Tashir Capital moves to block government takeover of Electric  Networks of Armenia

ArmInfo.Tashir Capital has filed a lawsuit requesting the court to intervent and  prevent the Armenian government from acquiring the shares and assets of   Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA). Vardan Aloyan, a representative of Tashir Capital, shared this information in an interview with journalists on January 29.

The first hearing in the case of Tashir Capital against the Public  Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) took place today in the  Administrative Court, presided over by Judge Lilit Sadoyan. The  company is challenging the PSRC's decision to revoke its electricity  distribution license.

"We have filed a motion to secure the claim. The court must hear this  case within two months, but simultaneously, the government must  submit a proposal to acquire ENA shares or assets within three  months. We have filed a corresponding motion to suspend this,  preventing the government from taking such actions," the lawyer  clarified.

Lawyer Vardan Aloyan also raised concerns about the constitutional  validity of the legal changes that paved the way for this process. He  argued that legislative amendments were specifically introduced  following the detention of Samvel Karapetyan to facilitate the  removal of ENA from its owners.

"In other words, they amended the law to seize ENA from its owners.  There's also a question of retroactivity-the law was passed in July,  but it allows for past violations  to be considered. The PSRC and the  Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure were given  broad powers to present past violation dating back even before  the  Tashir Group acquired the company, Aloyan stated, noting that this  was done to add weight to the case.  The lawyers also filed a motion  to include the government-appointed interim manager of the ENA,  Romanos Petrosyan, as a third party. The interim manager is an  administrative body, not a representative of the ENA, and is not  authorized to represent the company. However, the court rejected this  motion, also denying Aloyan permission to represent the ENA. The  court ruled that the company should be represented by a person  authorized by Petrosyan, who, however, fails to attend court hearings  and does not present any position. "Essentially, the ENA is now  deprived of the right to judicial protection," the lawyer emphasized.

Recall, during its meeting on November 17, 2025, the Public Services  Regulatory Commission (PSRC) made a decision to invalidate the ESA  license issued to Tashir Capital. As PSRC Chairman Mesrop Mesropyan  told reporters, the revocation of the electricity transmission  license begins a process stipulated by national legislation.  Specifically,  a three-month countdown begins, during which the state  will negotiate with the owner or the Board of Directors about buying  out the company's shares, which will ultimately determine an  acceptable price. If negotiations are unsuccessful, the state may  assume preemptive control of the grid. Until this process is  completed, the institution of an interim manager will remain in  place. After the grid is nationalized, the state will determine its  status. One option is to sell the company to another company, another  is to transfer the management to a state-private sector consortium,  and the third option is to maintain state ownership of the grid. 

Today, at a government briefing, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan  stated that the market value of Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) is  currently being assessed, and that the company's market value may  decline due to its poor financial situation. He stated that if the  final value is affordable to the state budget, ENA will be  nationalized and transferred to the trust management of a reputable  international company or concern.  "There are also opinions, albeit  very preliminary, that the company's financial situation may be so  poor that its market value will decline, and [for its acquisition -  ed.] it will simply be possible to allocate funds by government  decision. But I won't say anything concrete yet. I don't think  there's any rush," Pashinyan stated.