Abandoning Russian natural gas would have significantly more serious consequences for Armenia than it did for Germany or other European countries, Russian Security Council Deputy Secretary Alexey Shevtsov said on September 25.
Shevtsov made the remarks in response to recent statements by Armenian Security Council Secretary Alen Simonyan about diversifying the country’s natural gas supplies.
According to Shevtsov, Russian natural gas is supplied to Armenia at a substantially lower price than gas that could be purchased from alternative sources. This is the Russian official’s assessment of the economic consequences Armenia could face if it reduced or ended its reliance on Russian gas.
Simonyan, for his part, has said that Armenia intends to diversify its energy supplies rather than replace dependence on one country with dependence on another. He has stated that Yerevan is prepared to consider purchasing gas from Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan and other possible sources if appropriate supply options become available.
On September 24, Simonyan also said he had no information about a possible change in the price of Russian gas, while emphasizing that Armenia does not intend to remain dependent on a single supply route and will continue its diversification policy.
The statements come amid an ongoing public debate over Armenia’s energy diversification and the future role of Russian gas in the country’s energy supply.
