MINERAL RENTS IN ARMENIA

The authors proposed a method for calculating mineral rents at the industry level and calculated mineral rents in the metal ore mining industry in Armenia for the period 2018-2022. We have revealed that the highest value of mineral rents was recorded in 2021, which is due to an increase in prices of the main raw materials that Armenia exports, despite a decrease in physical export volumes. The average value of the ratio of mineral rents to GDP for the same period ranged from 0.61% to 1.37%, and this ratio reached its maximum value in 2021. We come to the conclusion that mineral rents mainly reflect the global volatility of commodity prices, which affects the value of mineral rents, which means that Armenia needs a progressive royalty calculation system to eliminate price volatility and ensure additional budget revenues. We also come to the conclusion that the new hybrid royalty system, which entered into force on January 1, 2023, may be acceptable for the industry in terms of the fact that it will not be considered a heavy burden when prices rise on the world market based on the coefficients calculated by us.