Using a residential elevator in Yerevan can be a perilous ride, fraught with hidden danger.

Yerevan Mayor Taron Margaryan has recently organized a number of advisory meetings designed to tighten the monitoring of elevators in Armenia’s capital. Such meetings become more frequent whenever news gets out about a mechanically unsafe elevator or, tragically, whenever someone is injured or even killed.

The Yerevan municipality annually allocates funds for elevator maintenance and Margaryan knows full well how such monies are spent.

At a recent municipal meeting on the issue, Margaryan called for greater expenditure accountability when it comes to elevator maintenance.

Let’s now look at the municipal funds allocated in 2014 to Yerevan’s administrative districts earmarked for elevator maintenance.

When it comes to purchasing and installing elevator equipment, the municipality has declared a tender open to all.

Artak Aleksanyan, district leader of Malatia, told Hetq that a company called Ankhapan Verelak (Unbreakable Elevator) won the bid for the district this year and last. With the 15 million drams(US$30,893) allocated, the company repaired 98 elevators.

According to the contract between the company and the municipality (a copy of which Hetq requested), Ankhapan Verelak listed many items it purchased at much higher unit prices than the market rates as specified by the Ministry of Finance.

For example, the price of a counterweight spring listed at 5,400 dram (US$11.12) by the ministry was listed at 51, 600 ($106.27) dram in the contract

Metal cable: 480 dram (market); 2,390 (contract)

Copper enamel communication wire: 7,200 (market); 10,500 (contract)

Coaxial cable: 240 (market); 2,800 (contract)

Cardboard: 1,800 (market); 9,375 (contract)

(This is just a partial expenditures list)

A comparison of the prices listed by the ministry and those appearing in the contract, show that Ankhapan Verelak is receiving 15 million dram for various material that in reality cost less than 4 million.

While inflating the price of various goods is a common technique used by companies contracting with the government, both in Armenia and worldwide) Hetq has uncovered that Ankhapan Verelak is actually a creation of the Yerevan Municipality.

The company director told Hetq that the money received from the municipality for elevator repair and maintenance is their only source of income.

The director didn’t conceal the fact that the 15 million dram it receives is used to cover wages, utilities, taxes and other expenses, in addition to elevator maintenance.

Then again, if the company is an offshoot of the municipality, most likely the mayor and his staff close their eyes at such financial hanky-panky.  But what about the taxpayers who are essentially keeping Ankhapan Verelak on its financial feet?

To gauge if a private company could do the job at a lower cost, Hetq got hold of a contract bid submitted by an elevator company for another Yerevan district.

That very same counterweight spring that was listed at 51,600 by Ankhapan was listed at 29,510 by the private company.

We let the readers draw their own conclusions.

Regardless, it just makes sense to assume that more elevators could be made safe for Yerevan residents, with the same amount of municipal money, if the bids weren’t “won” by the municipality’s company.