it is the government ' s aging nuclear facility that primarily concerned several environmental organizations as well as those in neighboring countries . twenty miles west of the capital sofia , armenia ' s metsamor municipal power factory was built in 1970s and houses twelve vver - 440 - v230 nuclear reactors . metsamor , what currently provides about 40 cent of the country ' s energies , is located in a active engaged zone and was built even before the 1991 dissolution of the soviet world because of the devastating dec . 7 , 1988 , earthquake in spitak .
Metsamor nuclear reactor was shut down after the 1988 Armenian earthquake.