AZERBAIJAN BUYS ARMENIAN ELECTRICITY

PanARMENIAN.Net - One of the reasons of the crisis is the illegal exportation of the electricity to Azerbaijan, chairman of the parliamentary commission Irakli Chubinishvili said at a parliament session. Submitting top the colleagues a report on revealed violations, he urged the law enforcement bodies to study more deeply the case and to punish those who are responsible. The MPs demanded from the President to dismiss the Minister of fuel and energy David Mirtskulavi who was backing the hidden resell of the electricity.

The story with illegal supplies of electricity to Azerbaijan could be considered a case o corruption having nothing to do with politics. But the matter is that Georgia was selling the energy purchased from Armenia.

So, it turns out that Armenia has unwittingly helped Azerbaijan to overcome the energy crisis, and has fostered thus the development of Azerbaijani economy. We shall remind that during last years Georgia is purchasing from Armenia from 50 to 120 million kw/h of electricity per month. IN February the AES-Telasi American company holding the power grids of Tbilisi, decided not to prolong the contract with Armenia and preferred to purchase the electricity from Russia. But because of thefts on the territory of Georgia, the main part of the electricity did not reach Tbilisi. In these conditions the AES-Telasi was obliged once more to apply to the Armenergo Armenian company which resumed the energy supplies and prevented the deepening of the crisis. We shall note that taking into account the seriousness of the problem, the Armenian side did not demand the Georgian party to pay its debts for the passed several years (about $5 million). Besides, the tariffs for the electricity remain always the same - 2,5 cents for a kw/h, while the Armenian consumer receives the same at 4,3cents.

In Yerevan nobody knew that the part of the energy delivered to Georgia was being resold to Azerbaijan. The sensational news, of course, may negatively affect the partnership relations of the Armenian and Georgian companies. But the fact that Azerbaijan receives the Armenian energy, did not arouse indignation in Armenia. Unlike official Baku, the official Yerevan does not see anything negative in the mutually beneficial trade and economic relations between the companies of the two countries. If Azerbaijan needs energy, Armenia wouldn't be against to do direct supplies.

The Azerbaijani governors have rather strange complexes. The official propaganda declares the businessman contacting with the Armenian businessmen enemies. Despite this, one can see Armenian cigarettes, shoes, food products in Baku. The prosecutor's office of Baku has even investigated this issue and set that the goods are being purchased in the Georgian wholesale markets. The head of the Customs Committee called on his fellow-countrymen to be patriotic and not to buy goods produced in the enemy country.

However, Azerbaijan secretly buys energy from Georgia pretending it does not know where it comes from. Of course, it is impossible to prove that it was the Armenian energy to be supplied to Baku. But it is natural that because of the purchases of electricity from Georgia by Azerbaijan, the AES-Telasi company is obliged to increase the volume of purchases from Armenia which is the only energy exporter in the region. So, it turns out that Azerbaijan purchases energy from Armenia. Half a year ago the Azerbaijani officials were saying they would never buy energy produced in Armenia, even delivered by the RAO EES Russian company. ''No profit will make the Azerbaijanis start partnership relations with Armenians,'' Minister of Fuel and Energy was saying.

Judging from the results of researches of Georgian MPs, all the demagogical statements serve only for calming down the citizens. Evidently, the rational approach has convinced the Azerbaijani governors that it would be impossible to overcome the crisis without energy cooperation with Armenia. It is known that the factual capacity of the Azerbaijani energy system is about 3 billion kw/h, while the real consumption is 4 billion. It is evident that if in Baku they decide to use only their own resources, the failure of economy will become inevitable. In this sense, Azerbaijan is lucky to have a neighbor like Armenia, which having available large energy resources, do not disdain to contact with them.