Interim Board
In January 2024, the International Chamber of Mines of Armenia (ICMA) established an interim board with a six-month mandate. The Interim Board played a vital role in shaping ICMA’s vision, strengthening its organizational foundations, and expanding its network. Although their official mandate concluded in June 2024, the Members have remained actively engaged in ICMA’s activities, continuing to share their expertise, guidance, and support. Their ongoing involvement has ensured continuity in the Chamber’s work and provided valuable momentum during its early growth stage. We are deeply grateful to the Interim Board Members for their unwavering commitment and leadership. Their contributions have been instrumental in laying the groundwork for ICMA’s future development and will continue to inspire the Chamber as it grows.
Rafi Baghdjian
Co-Founder
Rafi Baghdjian was an executive at Shell for 35 years, covering the technical, commercial and leadership aspects of the energy business during 10 assignments worldwide, until 2017. Rafi is currently advisor to several foundations and institutions, including the Centre for Scientific Innovation and Education Foundation in Armenia, the Aznavour Foundation and the Armenian Bioinformatics Institute. Rafi graduated as a chemical engineer from Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Lille (France), in 1981. Rafi lectures around the world using 45 Learnings based on some 60 real life stories and events from his 35 years at Shell, covering Cultural Navigation, Deal Making and Strategic Leadership.
Vicken Aprahamian
Interim Board member
Vicken comes from the copper and precious metals refining and manufacturing industry. He has over 30 years of experience and has worked for a number of metallurgical facilities in Africa, Europe and North America. He currently holds the position of Senior Process Metallurgist at the Royal Canadian Mint in Ottawa, Canada. He brings hydro- and pyrometallurgy expertise and his strengths are both in process research and metallurgical operations. He has been involved in several novel metals refining projects from laboratory inception to full operation. As part of his activities he often mentors younger engineers and co-op students and well versed in health and safety practices. He holds a bachelors degree in chemistry from Concordia University as well as a masters in metallurgical engineering from McGill University. He regularly volunteers with metallurgical societies in Canada and has lectured on metals refining in schools and universities.
Naira Derdzyan
Interim Board member
Rene Carapetian is a Principal Mining Engineer, B.Sc., P. Eng. from Toronto, Canada. With over three decades of international experience in surface mining operations and projects, Rene specialises in pit optimisation, design and production scheduling, mining operation improvement, mine cost estimation and financial analysis, project evaluation, and provides relevant training to mine technical personnel. He has also been involved in mining arbitration cases. He is a skilled technical problem solver who excels at immersing himself in new projects, gathering and analysing the necessary information and data, and providing timely solutions for potential issues.
Hayk Aloyan
Interim Board member
Hayk Aloyan holds PhD in Geology and an MBA from Cambridge University Judge Business School, UK. He has 27 years of experience in the mining industry and management. In 2005, Hayk Aloyan founded Lydian Armenia and has been its Managing Director since then. Alongside a team of geologists from the UK, he discovered the Amulsar Gold deposit in 2006, the first mining discovery in Armenia after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Before leading Lydian, Hayk Aloyan held roles as a Senior Researcher and Deputy Chief at the Exploration Department of the Mining and Metallurgical Institute. Hayk Aloyan has authored numerous articles and over 40 research papers on Armenian metallogenesis, establishing himself as a leading expert in resource estimation.
ARMEN STEPANYAN
Interim Board member
Dr. A.Stepanyan has 23 years of experience in Environmental, Social and Health and Safety management, Security, Sustainable Development and Corporate Social Responsibility. Prior to joining Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine in 2022, A. Stepanyan was Director of Environment with Petropavlovsk PLC, a London-listed mining company, one of the most established and experienced vertically integrated gold producers in the Far East of Russia, responsible for managing the Environmental Department with extended role on ESG reporting. From 2007-2021 A. Stepanyan worked with Lydian International, a TSX listed mining company with a flagship gold project, Amulsar, in Armenia, holding the position of Senior VP Sustainability since 2018. Before starting his career in the field of mining, A. Stepanyan worked at the Nuclear Safety Regulatory Committee of Armenia, and before that, at the Center for Ecological-Noosphere Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia as a researcher. He is a Ph.D. in Engineering.
Artyom Geghamyan
Executive Chairman, Co-Founder
Artyom Geghamyan’s core experience lies in the field of international commercial arbitration and corporate legal services with a focus on the mining and metals industry. With a distinguished career spanning 20+ years, Artyom Geghamyan has established a reputation for delivering exceptional legal services. In addition to being the Executive Chairman at ICMA, Artyom is also the founder of Tabia Legal Solutions. Previously, he served as Deputy Minister of Justice and as a member of the Constitutional Reform Commission of Armenia, demonstrating their commitment to advancing the legal system and governance in the country.
Artyom holds an LL.M. in International and Comparative Law from Indiana University McKinney School of Law. Additionally, he holds a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) from Harvard Kennedy School of Government, enhancing their understanding of public policy and governance.
