YEREVAN, June 30. /ARKA/. Supporting Armenia’s effort to become greener, the E5P fund is co-financing the construction of a new landfill for solid waste for the Gegharkunik and Kotayk regions with a €2 million grant.

The EBRD, which manages the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership fund (E5P), and Armenia’s Ministry of Finance signed the relevant agreement today. The grant will support the construction of a new landfill with modern solid-waste management processes, covering the collection and disposal of municipal solid waste. It will provide major environmental and social benefits for local residents.

Work on the project started in December 2014 when the EBRD committed a €3.5 million loan, which was complemented by a €3.5 million grant provided by the EU Neighborhood Investment Facility. The EU-compliant solid-waste management system will cover eight municipalities, seven in the Kotayk region and one in the Gegharkunik region.

The project was expanded in 2016 with an additional €2 million sovereign loan from the EBRD. At present it covers all seven municipalities in the Kotayk region (Hrazdan, Abovyan, Nor Hachn, Byureghavan, Charentsavan, Yeghvard, Tsakhadzor) and all five municipalities in the Gegharkunik region (Sevan, Vardenis, Gavar, Martuni, Chambarak).

It is the EBRD’s first solid waste project in Armenia and supports the government’s plans to modernize and upgrade the country’s waste management system to European standards.

The E5P grant of €2 million will complement the additional €2 million EBRD loan and co-finance transfer stations, waste collection and transfer trucks, waste containers and other specialized equipment. The total project cost is €11 million. E5P is a multinational fund managed by the EBRD. The EU is the largest donor and Armenia is also a contributor to the Fund.

Angela Sax, Acting Head of the EBRD in Armenia, said: “We are very grateful to the E5P donors – especially the European Union and Sweden – and the government of Armenia as well as the local municipalities for our successful cooperation. The E5P grant is a very important contribution to this project, which will bring much-needed improvements in waste management infrastructure. It will complement the EBRD’s loan financing and ensure the successful continuation and completion of the project.”

Ewa Manik, E5P Principal Fund Manager at the EBRD, added: “The project will bring substantial benefits to residents and the environment, will have a strong demonstration effect and will help to develop better public awareness of the benefits of anti-littering measures and recycling.”

The EU Ambassador to Armenia, Piotr Switalski, emphasized: “The EU is the main contributor to the E5P Fund. This project is part of the larger support that the EU is providing to Armenia in the waste management sector. To date, we have committed €22.4 million in non-refundable grants, which shows the importance the EU attaches to environmental issues in the country. Our support is provided through five different projects in Kotayk, Yerevan and Vanadzor as we are co-financing with partners such as the EBRD, EIB or KfW.”

Since the start of its operations in Armenia, the EBRD has invested over €1.1 billion in 158 projects in the country’s financial, corporate, infrastructure and energy sectors, with 88 per cent of these investments being in the private sector.

The E5P is a multi-donor fund operating in the Eastern Partnership countries of Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. The European Union (EU) is the largest overall contributor to E5P, with committed funds of €70 million. For E5P in Armenia, the EU has committed €10 million, which is boosted by additional commitments from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Sweden and from the Taiwan Business-EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund.

The pledged funds are to help Armenia improve energy efficiency, contributing to energy security, economic competitiveness and policy dialogue, while having a positive impact on the environment. Armenia is also a contributor to E5P, with committed funds of €1 million.

The main objective of the initiative is to use grants to leverage loans from international financial institutions for municipal energy efficiency and environmental projects such as the rehabilitation of water and wastewater systems, solid waste management, street lighting and the insulation of public buildings. -0-