Prime Minister angered by SCPEC decision to fine Yerevan Beer Company?
Before the start of a cabinet meeting on November 18, Armenian Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan spoke about Yerevan Beer Company which was fined on November 1 by the State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition (SCPEC) in the amount of $110 million. Although the SCPEC is an independent structure but it does not prevent us from expressing an opinion about the move,” Mr. Karapetyan said in his opening remarks. At the same time, he advised SCPEC Chairman Artak Shaboyan to direct their efforts to the market of staples ‘where citizens' complaints are more.’ “It is more important than the beer market, where there is serious competition," the Armenian PM stressed in his speech. When fining Yerevan Beer Company, the SCPEC claimed that the business entity abused its dominant position and sold its products at unreasonably high prices, recording extra profit in AMD 100 million. The SCPEC decided that the money should go to the state budget.
