The EU4Environment

On 3 June 2023, a monitoring visit to the “KARA YEV KAREN LLC” enterprise was conducted by the Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production (RECP) experts Ms. Susanna Hakobyan and Mr. Perch Bojukyan, alongside business planning expert, Mr. Artur Ghazaryan. The purpose of the visit was to assess the implementation of the RECP measures recommended to boost the production of dairy products and to support the development of a RECP action plan. During the monitoring visit, one notable improvement observed at this company located in Vanadzor, Lori region was the replacement of a semi-automatic filling line with a fully automatic line. This change positively affected the production of dairy such as sour cream and yogurt. This new line also eliminates the need for manual labor and increases productivity. This change is expected to enhance efficiency in the production process.

“ELBAT” CJSC is a leading producer of high-quality lead-acid batteries. The company offers a wide range of batteries for cars and commercial vehicles between 40-100 A/H and 120-200 A/H, and provides technical services to select the best battery option for its clients. The enterprise’s annual production is around 15,000 batteries. Motivated to improve its environmental performance and optimize its resource usage (materials, water, energy) the company joined EaP GREEN in 2017. The programme was in line with ELBAT's environmental management system (EMS), whose objectives include minimizing the negative impact of the production systems on the environment, and mitigating risks to people. Thanks to EaP GREEN, RECP is now a well-understood concept within ELBAT, and it is used to improve the company's performance, part of its EMS. This publication shows the company’s experience reported after the monitoring exercise conducted in 2021, four years after the programme ended. RECP measures led to the company benefits, such as Implementation of 5/7 RECP options (plus housekeeping rules to improve general energy efficiency) Total economic savings of 81,550 EUR/year General payback period of 2.5 years Reduction of resource consumption per battery unit: Electricity: 2 % | Natural gas: 4 % | Water: 16 % Reduction of waste generation per battery unit of lead: 11 % Emission reduction of 10 tonnes of CO -eq/year Improved occupational health and safety measures (due to better energy and waste management) Contribution to better environmental performance (framework of ELBAT’s EMS)

Success stories EaP Green Monitoring. In 2022 EU4Environment RECP project team has continued undertaken series of visits to the companies working and collaborating with project under Resource efficiency and cleaner production measures, which were recommended within the EaP Green RECP in plant assessment audits in 2014- 2017. These SMEs are working in construction material, chemical, metal, food and agricultural production industries: Small and medium-sized enterprises in Armenia have received technical advice and proposals for the implementation of individual activities for each enterprise, which offer efficient use of resources and clean production solutions. Since then, others have joined in adopting RECP measures, which has brought them continuing improvements in environmental performance, lowered production costs, and boosted productivity. RECP assessments identified a variety of RECP options that companies were then able to implement based on their specific needs, resources, capacity, and priorities. Throughout this process, RECP measures implemented by companies helped reducing waste and turning it into new innovative products, introduced water saving technologies for battery producer companies, recommended new solutions on energy efficiency and use of solar power, focused on improved technology change, better housekeeping, knowledge sharing and on the application of the RECP methodology in their own domains.

The EU-funded EU4Environment RECP Demonstration Project in Armenia is moving forward with the monitoring missions of the SMEs assessed during the implementation of a previous programme, EaP GREEN, which took place in 2013-2017. These companies are located in different regions in Armenia: the cities of Ararat and Vanadzor, the Lori region, and Yerevan. The enterprises are working in various fields: production of electric batteries, fruit/food production, preserves, construction materials, and chemicals. Some of the names include Lusia Food (frozen food), Rozfrud (conserved products in Vanadzor), Ararat-Chanshin (road construction materials) and Galik (the largest producer of limestone in the country).