The printing paper deficit in Armenia may take longer. Director of “Armenian Railways” Ararat Khrimyan says that the paper freighted and accumulated along with the other cargo at the Ukrainian Ilyicheyevisk harbor were supposed to be on the ferry-boat on Tuesday or Wednesday. On Wednesday, at around 7:00 p.m., Mr. Khrimyan told us that at the given time, the Armenian cargo was being freighted on the ferry-boat, including printing paper. According to Khrimyan, the ferry-boat was supposed to head for the Poti harbor on Thursday and the cargo will reach Armenia in 8=9 days. Director of the “Tigran Mets” printing-house Vrezh Markosyan said that he had information from the harbor that the ferry-boats hadn’t been loaded and would be loaded on Thursday. It’s hard to say which side is telling the truth, especially since both are interested sides and have “direct contact” with the Ilyicheyevisk harbor. “Tigran Mets” has 7 carriers of paper at Ilyicheyevisk, while “Armenian Railways” has 200 carriers. During our conversation, Markosyan also mentioned that after December 7, the printing-house will not work until the imported paper doesn’t reach Armenia. “I use 15 tons of paper a day, while the other printing-houses use a ton. Whom can I get that much paper from?” asked Markosyan during a phone conversation.
A couple of days ago, the Ministry of Transportation and Communication of Armenia announced to “ArmInfo” that the loading of Armenian products on the Ilyicheyevsk-Batum ferry was almost over and that the ferry would depart soon. The Ministry officials also said that the ferry had not moved for 20 days due to poor weather conditions. The ferry with 100 wagons will reach Armenia in seven to eight days and Armenia’s 200 wagons have been accumulated at Ilyicheyevsk due to the dysfunction of the ferry.