Hrach Berberyan: Drought in Shirak Region Because of HPPs

Hrach Berberyan: Drought in Shirak Region Because of HPPs

There is a drought in Shirak region, the HPPs are to be blamed: this alarm signal was spread by Chairman of "Armenian Agrarian Peasants Union" Hrach Berberyan, representing the interests of the farmers who closed Gyumri-Yerevan highway as a sign of protest. In his interview with News.am, Hrach Berberyan blamed the Armenian government for the lack of water in the reservoirs.

‘If we had a thick layer of snow this year and heavy rains in the spring, then why is there a shortage of water in our reservoirs now? According to the information we have, as far as the villagers have informed us, there are several HPPs that rely on the reservoirs and that water flows to Akhuryan reservoir for 12 months of the year. 50-60% of Akhuryan reservoir goes to Turkey. In other words, we are not only hindering our villagers, but also helping Turkey," he said.

"The government is to blame for the lack of water in our reservoirs today. They sold our water, I say clearly, they sold it to HPPs. Those HPPs carry water for 12 months of the year, the norms have been violated," Hrach Berberyan said.

In her turn, Naira Nahapetyan, President of the Union of Small HPPs, issued a statement that the accusations against small HPPs are groundless. The "Gyumri" small HPP, which belongs to her, has not been operating since May 15.”

It should be noted that Berberyan addresses the issue of water intake from reservoirs for the needs of small HPPs not only during the irrigation season, but also during the water accumulation season. That is, when reservoirs have to store water for drought use, the water is used for energy purposes.

According to the official website of the Public Services Regulatory Commission, as of April 1, 2021, "Gyumri" SHPP is operating on Shirak canal using the water of the Akhuryan Reservoir in Shirak region. The capacity of the SHPP is 5280 KW, the annual production of electricity is 14.2 million kWh. The calculated output of the water intake is 6.4 cubic meters per second.

Another SHPP - "Mayisyan" SHPP is built on a drinking water pipeline. The capacity of the SHPP is 320 KW, the annual electricity production is 0.7 million kW h. The calculated output of the water intake is 0.5 cubic meters per second.

July 06, 2021 at 16:32