The development of artificial intelligence and information technologies has become one of the key arenas of global competition. In this context, Armenia is seeking to strengthen its position through large-scale initiatives aimed at building AI infrastructure and attracting high-performance computing capacities.
In recent days, during the visit of U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, the launch of the second phase of the AI center project in Armenia was announced, involving the American companies NVIDIA and Firebird, along with the granting of a license for the delivery of tens of thousands of additional GPUs. It is noted that the implementation of these projects would place Armenia among the countries hosting some of the world’s largest GPU clusters dedicated to artificial intelligence. What will this actually bring to Armenia, and is it merely another pre-election bubble?
A Project with Strategic Potential
According to Hayk Chobanyan, former Minister of High-Tech Industry of Armenia and shareholder of Avenue Consulting Group, the AI center project has become one of the most discussed topics in the global tech community over the past year. However, its real significance goes far beyond a single high-tech initiative.
In his assessment, the project has strategic potential and could become a systemic growth driver not only for the sector itself, but for the economy as a whole.
“This project aspires to become one of the first to generate a development effect not only within its own niche, but well beyond it,” Chobanyan emphasized, adding that these spillover effects are among the project’s most important components.
Full Utilization of the Hrazdan Thermal Power Plant as a Spillover Effect
Chobanyan noted that the city of Hrazdan is currently being considered as a preliminary location for the center. He attributed this choice to two key factors. The first is climatic conditions, which are crucial for data centers of this scale, as they generate large amounts of heat and require efficient cooling systems. The second factor is the presence of the Hrazdan Thermal Power Plant.
“Statistics from recent years show that the Hrazdan TPP operates at a relatively low percentage of its capacity. With the development of solar energy, it has increasingly become a supporting system and mainly operates at night,” he said.
According to Chobanyan, once the project is implemented, the center’s energy demand could reach and even exceed 100 megawatts, translating into annual consumption of more than 800,000 megawatt-hours of electricity. He recalled that after the fifth power unit was commissioned, the nominal capacity of the Hrazdan TPP approached 1.5 gigawatts, yet only about one-third of this capacity is used on a stable annual basis.
Exporting Information Instead of Electricity
In this context, Chobanyan stressed that worldwide, the creation of such centers is viewed not only as a technological project, but also as an energy-related one. According to him, Armenia is currently considered an electricity-exporting country, with its energy strategy focused on integration along north–south corridors.
“When we introduce such systems, we significantly increase the added value of the energy we produce,” he noted. Chobanyan explained that while direct electricity exports yield limited profitability, using that same energy for data processing and AI infrastructure transforms it into a product with far greater value.
“In this case, we are not selling electricity, but information — in a broad sense — which has a much higher added value,” he said, adding that such services can become raw material for research organizations and, in many cases, core infrastructure.
In Chobanyan’s conclusion, transforming energy into high-tech products or services could become a major source of profit for Armenia’s economy and one of the key pillars of its long-term development.
A $1 Billion Turnover
Alexander Yesayan, co-founder of the Team telecommunications operator and the Firebird data center, claims that once the project becomes operational, its annual turnover could exceed $1 billion, according to preliminary estimates. As Yesayan noted, this would also generate a direct fiscal effect: tax revenues and payroll alone could amount to at least $80–100 million per year. Beyond the direct economic impact, the project is also expected to have a significant indirect effect on the country’s economy.