The explosion at the Nairit plant in Yerevan and the fire that followed it not just buried any prospects for its restart, but also showed sad prospects for Armenia's economy, which is also waiting for its "fire," Armenian media write.
A fire broke out at the Nairit chemical plant after an explosion, and it is especially noteworthy that it occurred against the backdrop of the recently increased talks about a likely investor. For many years the plant looked like a peculiar model of the history of Armenia's independence. It is unclear what exactly happened, but instead of being a chemical production resource for the state, the plant turned into a giant metal scrap yard, everyone cashed in on it, but the enterprise and the state got into multimillion-dollar debts.
The information portal 1in.am writes: "In recent years, numerous statements have been made about Nairit accusing high-ranking officials, presidents, prime ministers and ministers of Armenia. The plant changed hands, but it is absolutely unclear what exactly was going on there and whose fault it was.
Obviously, the problem of Nairit has two faces - economic and political. Economic difficulties are understandable - no doubt, the chemical giant that worked in the Soviet system had to face serious difficulties after the collapse of the system. But in any law-based state the concept of responsibility, they would have do something about Nairit a log time ago, if not law enforcement, then at least a special parliamentary commission. Especially now, when talks about new investment options intensified, and in the same time there is an explosion at the plant.
50 tons of ethynol varnish burned down on the territory of the plant. The 10-year-old varnish that the Russians had to take out, but for some reason left in the country, was burnt out. God knows how many things have not been take away and how many reasons for fire are left.
The explosion and fire were attributed to the technical causes, but unfortunately, we are almost sure that there will be no serious study of the reasons for this force majeure. Regardless of yesterday's fire, Nairit has already been a serious problem for the country - in terms of economic prospects, social tension. It is one of those symbolic dead ends, which requires the authorities to find a way out, and the intersection where the authorities should say goodbye to the Soviet economy - in order to continue their journey with the new economy.
The ministers and governments changed, but none of them dared to declare publicly that the restart of the Nairit plant is unrealistic, and none of the governments had the talent to ensure investment in the chemical plant. The plant has become a reduced copy of our economy, our state - being associated with uncertainty and hopelessness, looting and corruption, inefficient management and indifference. If any system - big or small - is not able to find a solution, then force majeure is inevitable.
The fire, in fact, burned the opportunity to restart Nairit, because no serious businessman will throw his money "into the mouth of the fire." Nairit is a model of our economy: the fire has long absorbed it, zeroing the opportunity for investment and development.
The Nairit fire was visible, it was localized and extinguished, but it was just a manifestation of the elimination of the consequences of one particular episode, while the causes giving rise to the fire of the Armenian economy are growing every day, burning the prospects for the country's development."
