Will the third auction of 'Golden Palace' never take place? Interested parties are from abroad but cannot come to see it

'Hraparak' newspaper reports: 'The fate of the 'Golden Palace' hotel, handed over to the state's management, remains uncertain. Recall that former head of the Tax Service Armen Avetisyan donated the hotel he owned to the state in September 2019, 'in exchange for leaving him alone.' The authorities have yet to be able to either operate or realize it.

Before the spread of the coronavirus, the hotel was put up for auction twice, but no buyers were found. Then the pandemic started, and one of the most luxurious hotels in Tsaghkadzor became an isolation center for COVID-19 patients. Today it is again empty and not in operation. The chairman of the State Property Management Committee, Narek Babayan, told us that they intend to auction off the hotel for the third time. However, both the date of the auction and the starting price remain unknown.

Babayan stated that there are interested parties in the hotel, but due to the pandemic, they have been unable to come and see it, as potential buyers are from abroad, such as a Chinese businessman. There are no interested parties from Armenia. In fact, for a year, the government has been unable to manage the property donated to the state effectively, whereas if it were operated by a private entity, it would have generated huge taxes for the state, ensuring a multiplicative effect in the economy, not to mention the large number of jobs created.'