On September 15, Yerevan hosted a public discussion of the bill on Protection of Economic Competition, which was amended by the State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition (SCPEC).

The discussion brought together SCPEC Chairman Artak Shaboyan, RA Minister of Economy Nerses Yeritsyan, Chairman of the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Armenia Arsen Ghazaryan and a number of entrepreneurs.

Referring to basic provisions envisaged by the bill, Artak Shaboyan pointed to toughening of sanctions against enterprises violating competition principles.

Specifically, according to him, fines for unfair competition will be increased from the current AMD 500,000 for all enterprises. “We have set minimum and maximum limits for enterprises, depending on their financial situation,” he said.

According to Shaboyan, fines applied against small enterprises may total AMD 300,000; large enterprises may be fined at the amount of 0.1% of their annual turnover.

Wider powers of the antimonopoly body is another important provision of the bill, envisaging not only punishments, but also preventive measures towards enterprises violating the law.

Besides, the bill foresees expansion of the information base, what will significantly simplify the monitoring implemented by the Commission.

However, the bill has not referred to the provision on state assistance within the framework of Twinning program implemented by the RA government jointly with the EU.

The bill will be submitted to the government for approval following its discussion with stakeholders.