The Armenian government will initiate its takeover of Russian–Armenian tycoon Samvel Karapetyan’s shares in the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA), the country’s main power grid operator.
The government will do so through a mechanism allowing it to nationalise companies if they override public interest.
The news was announced on Tuesday by the ENA’s state-appointed temporary manager Romanos Petrosyan, a member of the ruling Civil Contract party.
Petrosyan cited the 25 May deadline established by the Armenian Administrative Court during which the shareholders of the ENA ‘were expected, based on a proposal by the Armenian government, to transfer 100% of the company’s shares in a manner agreed with the government’.
He noted that no transfer of shares took place within the established timeframe, and citing relevant legislation, Petroyan announced that the Armenian government ‘will initiate the process of declaring the shares of ENA as being of overriding public interest and proceeding with their alienation (nationalisation)’.
Armenian authorities have not disclosed the sum offered in exchange for the ENA, which, according to documents obtained by RFE/RL, was ֏23.3 billion ($59 million), ‘on the condition that Karapetyan returns to the company the dividends he received over the past 10 years, amounting to ֏23.158 billion ($60 million)’.
Based on this, RFE/RL concluded ‘if the owner returns the dividends he received to the company, the government’s offer for the ENA shares would amount to ֏142 million ($360,000)’.
The ENA is owned by Karapetyan’s Tashir Group. The tycoon, who is currently under house arrest, was detained in June 2025 after making public statements siding with the Armenian Apostolic Church amid its confrontation with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
At the same time, Pashinyan announced that the time had come to nationalise the ENA.
Arshaluys Barseghyan
Katrapetyan’s Strong Armenia Alliance, established following his detention, is considered to be Pashinyan’s Civil Contract’s main challenger in the parliamentary elections scheduled for 7 June.
In November 2025, Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) voted to revoke the ENA’s electricity distribution licence, based on several serious violations identified by Petrosyan, the state-appointed interim manager of ENA.
According to legal amendments rushed through parliament in summer 2025, shortly after Karapetyan’s detention in June, if the ENA loses its licence, the grid must be recognised as a ‘publicly overriding interest’ and have its value assessed. The current owner, Tashir Group, would then be compensated for the takeover.
Tashir Group had initiated international arbitration, seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation over what it describes as unlawful interference in its investment in Armenia’s power sector.
