On July 4, 2025, the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia issued a negative conclusion on the preliminary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) application for the construction of “Vahagnadzor” Small Hydropower Plant (SHPP) on the Pambak River in the village of Vahagnadzor, part of Pambak consolidated community in Lori Region.
The initiator, “EVELPIS” LLC, had planned to construct the SHPP on the Pambak River. The company had previously received Water Use Permit No. 254-24 on June 20, 2024, and Electricity Generation License No. 0745 on June 30, 2023.
The SHPP, with a planned capacity of 2,568 kW, was expected to generate 16.53 million kWh of electricity annually.
The Ministry of Environment based its negative conclusion on several inconsistencies and incomplete data. Notably:
The intake elevation was listed as 1,065 meters in the EIA application, whereas the water use permit specifies 1,070 meters. Although the company was notified of this discrepancy, the data was not corrected.
A comparison with cadastral maps revealed that both the intake section and the pipeline route pass through state forest lands, yet the company failed to provide the required information concerning this matter.
According to subpoint (g) of the first point of the additional conditions—an integral part of the water use permit—it is clearly stated: "In the case of deviations from the SHPP construction project, this water use permit shall be deemed invalid.”
July 25, 2025 at 12:56