Yerevan /Mediamax/. Starting from May 1 of 2008, the Armenian government will stop subsidizing gas consumers##, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian said in Yerevan today.

Mediamax reports that, speaking at a briefing, Tigran Sarkisian reminded that, starting from 2006, the government has been subsidizing individuals and legal entities to prepare them for transition to new tariffs, caused by the growth of prices for the Russian gas.

According to the Prime Minister, in May, the Chairman of the Board of “Gazprom” OJSC Aleksey Miller will arrive in Yerevan to negotiate the conditions of purchases of Russian gas for the next 3 years.

Mediamax reminds that in 2006, the Armenian government provided “ArmRosGazprom” Company with $188,8mln as partial compensation of the established tariffs for consumption of gas. As a result, individuals paid 59 drams for one cubic meter of gas instead of 84 drams.

As a result of unprecedented growth of gas consumption in January of 2008, the means, allocated for subsidizing, were exhausted. Starting from May 1 of 2008, the new tariff will in fact start functioning.