RA Environment Ministry is proposing to reduce the installed capacity threshold of small hydropower plants from 30 MW to 10 MW. For this purpose, the Ministry has circulated on the joint website for publishing draft legal acts the draft resolution of RA Government "On Making Amendments to Resolution N 1300-A of the Government of the Republic of Armenia dated on September 8, 2011".
The substantiation of the draft says:
“The construction of small hydropower plants causes significant damage to nature, and in recent years, along with the development of small hydropower plants, there is a loss of biodiversity, rivers are overloaded with diversion pipes, and are experiencing a crisis. The development of small hydropower plants and the growing number of them is facilitated by the incentive mechanism established by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, according to which SHPPs enjoy the opportunity to sell electricity at higher, more stable tariffs.
This circumstance was the basis for setting a maximum capacity of up to 30 MW instead of the installed capacity of 10 MW for small hydropower plants built on natural watercourses, irrigation systems and drinking water pipelines without proper professional research on the proposed change and analysis, ignoring the potential of water resources in Armenia, the resulting statistics on the construction of hydropower plants and serious environmental and socio-economic problems arising from the operation of SHPPs, the protection of the aquatic ecosystem. In order to prevent the harmful effects of hydroelectric power plants, "Draft Government Resolution on Making Amendments to resolution N 1300-A of the Government of the Republic of Armenia dated on September 8, 2011" was developed.
Reminder: within the frameworks of UNDP/GEF-funded "Support to SHPP-relating reforms through the dialogue of public and RA Nature Protection Ministry for Sustainable Use of River Ecosystems” and "Supporting new reforms in SHPP sector through CSO-government dialogue" projects implemented in 2014-2018, one of the proposals of the expert group aimed at the reforms in the field of small hydropower plants referred to annulling resolution N 1300-A of the Government of the Republic of Armenia dated on September 8, 2011.
May 14, 2021 at 13:27