Russia 110329

Basic Political Developments Russian calendar: Key events for March 29

o Austria’s Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger to visit Russia, until Mar 30

o Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov to visit Sweden, until Mar 30

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov to Visit Sweden - A Russian trade delegation will visit Sweden on Wednesday 30th March 2011, led by Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov. The group will be met by the Swedish Minister for Trade, Ewa Björling, in Stockholm. Under the auspices of the Swedish-Russian Steering Committee, trade and economic ties will be discussed.

Russia-NATO Council to discuss situation in Libya - According to Rogozin, the Russian side intends to emphasize “inadmissibility of transition of the international operation in Libya to a land phase”. “Russia will consider that step as occupation of a sovereign country,” the ambassador stressed.

o Russia-NATO Council to discuss conflict settlement in Libya Russia ready to help settle Transdniestrian conflict - "We would like to help

promote this settlement process," Lavrov said at a meeting with his Moldovan counterpart Iurie Leanca in Moscow on Tuesday. Leanca, for his part, said that ongoing consultations on possible solutions to the problem should be replaced by talks.

Russia, Moldova FMs to discuss trade, economic ties, Dniester reg Sergei Lavrov: Russia and Kyrgyzstan interested in suppression of Afghan threats

- “Afghan terrorists, unfortunately, face almost no challenges as well as drug dealers. Our bilateral counterterrorism and counternarcotics cooperation with Kyrgyzstan - within the framework of the CSTO and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization - is a part of an overall effort to confront these challenges,” he said.

Abkhazian opposition demands not to cede even a small piece of land to Russia - They are concerned by the information that was reported during preparation of the talks on "demarcation and delimitation" of the Abkhazian section of the Georgian-Russian border which is taking place in Moscow today and tomorrow and to which an Abkhazian delegation was sent for from Sukhumi.

Radiation background normal in Russian Far East – EMERCOMo Radiation background normal in Russian Sakhalino Embassy renders assistance to Russians staying in Japano Russian South to host 500 Japanese kids

Russia can't export Wyoming uranium - A Russian state-owned firm mining Wyoming uranium can’t export what it mines and would need to meet stringent requirements before it could do so, the top U.S. nuclear regulator told Sen. John Barrasso in a letter released Monday.

US Russian speakers to help Russia's modernization - That was the keynote of a roundtable discussion of the modernization of Russia, a discussion that took place in Washington on Monday.

Muscovites bring flowers to metro stations year after terrorist attacks Metro bombing culprits named

o All perpetrators, masterminds of Moscow metro blasts identified - “The mastermind of explosions at the Moscow Metro stations was Magomedali Vagabov - one of the leaders of subversive and terrorist underground force in the territory of the Republic of Dagestan. Vagabov, the same as the other accomplices in the crime – Aliyev, Schaschayev, Magomednabiyev, Rabadanov and Isagadzhiyev offered armed resistance during their detention and were destroyed,” Markin added.

o Accomplice of Moscow Metro blasts put on intl wanted list - “The perpetrator of the terrorist acts is Gusen Magomedov, 22, a native of Dagestan. According to investigators, it was he who accompanied the female suicide bombers (Mariam) Sharipova and (Janet) Abdullayeva from Kizlyar to Moscow, and also managed their actions on the day of the attacks,” Markin said.

Ingush police find explosive belt in suspects' houseo Umarov, Byutukayev among Domodedovo terror suspects - Investigative

Committeeo Chechen warlord accused of staging airport bombing - Investigative

Committee's spokesman Vladimir Markin said Tuesday that the agency charged warlord Doku Umarov with organizing the Jan. 24 bombing of Moscow's Domodedovo airport that killed 37 and injured more than 180.

o Doku Umarov's bodyguards killed in Ingushetia – sourceo Chechen militant leader Umarov 'may have been killed in attack' o Terrorist leader Doku Umarov most likely destroyed in air strike - Doku

Umarov, the leader of North Caucasus gunmen has most likely been killed in a special operation conducted in the republic of Ingushetia. Umarov was reportedly the primary target in the operation.

Leader of Nalchik religious extremist group eliminated - "Asker Khazhirokov, born in 1987, was killed rendering resistance in an apartment. According to the Federal Security Service (FSB) department for Kabardino-Balkaria, he was the leader of a religious extremist group in Nalchik," NAC spokesman Nikolay Sintsov told Interfax.

Experts to present to PM results of work on updated Strategy-2020 Economic advisor calls for more Russian engineers Vladimir Putin accused of abusing his powers to enrich his friends - The dossier

by Russian opposition leaders alleges that people linked to Putin diverted £40billion in assets from a state-held enbergy giant. It also names Gennady Timchenko, a Russian oil trader whose fortune shot up from £1.2million in 2000 to £1.5billion in 2008.

Nashi Leader Sues Beaten Journalist for Slander Prosecutor won't ban anti-Semitic text - Moscow's chief prosecutor has refused to

ban the sale of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, one of the world's most infamous fake anti-Semitic texts, a top human rights group said Monday.

Billionaire Abramovich re-elected as speaker of the parliament of Russian Chukchi Region

Russian Press at a Glance, Tuesday, March 29, 2011 Jackson and Vanik won’t do us any good - Edward Verona on the outlook of the

“economic reset” between Russia and the US Aleksandr Gasyuk (Washington) Liberal on Paper - Can the Reincarnation of Moskovskie Novosti Live up to the

Legacy Established by its Once Acclaimed Predecessor? o Famous Perestroika Mouthpiece Relaunches With RIA

National Economic Trends Biggest Korean Fund Manager Bets Ruble Bonds Will Top Gains: Russia Credit CBR forex policy: Rouble appreciation trend less pronounced CBR interest rate policy: Inflation non-monetary in nature Russia is Opening the Door Wider to Private Investment in Natural Resources,

Banking and Health Care in an Effort to Lure Foreign Investors

Business, Energy or Environmental regulations or discussions Russian Power Sector Consolidates In $2.77 Billion Share Swap Mechel seeks to buy Raspadskaya coal company for $1.8-2.3 bln Russia's EuroSibEnergo may hold IPO in autumn OTP Bank issues RUB 2.5 bln bond in Russia Sberbank could convert 4% of shares into ADRs in 2011, 25% in all – source Vozrozhdeniye Q4 net profit down at 184 mln rbls y/y AMCU permits Severstal to buy over 25pct in Severstal Ukraine Facebook’s Russian Investors Start Second Fund, Vedomosti Says TPG, VTB Seek Lenta Auction to End Russian Feud, Vedomosti Says RusForest acquires Nord Timber Group RPT-UPDATE 1-AFI Development makes 2010 profit, targets Moscow

Activity in the Oil and Gas sector (including regulatory) Russia May Make Oil Companies Maintain Output, Vedomosti Reports Delay seen in building of Russia oil pipeline to China –paper Key Yamal oil pipeline may be delayed by three years Rosneft's net profit dips in FY10 Standard Life Investments tells BP to drop Rosneft deal share swap Sechin turns up heat as Rosneft insists will push through BP deal West Siberia boost for Exillon Transneft's net profit rises in 2010 Transneft minimum state ownership may be set at 75% Transneft discloses in-line 2011 financials forecast

Gazprom Gazprom considers internal upgrades Prirazlomnaya platform to be registered in Nenets Gazprom may get EUR 13 million in Lietuvos dujos dividends for 2010 Equal access rules for Gazprom gas transport system could come soon - Mr

Artemyev

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Full Text Articles

Basic Political Developments

Russian calendar: Key events for March 29http://www.prime-tass.com/news/calendar/_Russian_calendar_Key_events_for_March_29/-103/%7B953BB169-37D0-4D03-A706-FE486779EBC1%7D.uif

Austria’s Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger to visit Russia, until Mar 30

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov to visit Sweden, until Mar 30

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov to Visit Swedenhttp://theglobalherald.com/russian-deputy-prime-minister-sergei-ivanov-to-visit-sweden/14126/

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

A Russian trade delegation will visit Sweden on Wednesday 30th March 2011, led by Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov. The group will be met by the Swedish Minister for Trade, Ewa Björling, in Stockholm. Under the auspices of the Swedish-Russian Steering Committee, trade and economic ties will be discussed.

Minister Björling said of the meeting in Stockholm:

“Russia is a growing market where Swedish companies can play an important role in meeting the country’s needs in many different areas, such as energy efficiency, IT and telecommunications and infrastructure. Because Swedish companies are at the forefront, the potential really is huge.”

Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov spent time in Scandanavia with the KGB before moving into politics. With a degree in translation from Leningrad State University, he is fluent in both Swedish and English.

Russia-NATO Council to discuss situation in Libya

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096357&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 02.48

BRUSSELS, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - The situation in Libya will be in the focus of attention at a session of the Russia-NATO Council at the level of ambassadors on Tuesday, Russia’s Ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin told Tass.

According to Rogozin, the Russian side intends to emphasize “inadmissibility of transition of the international operation in Libya to a land phase”. “Russia will consider that step as occupation of a sovereign country,” the ambassador stressed.

A NATO source, for his part, told Tass that the Alliance will inform Russia on its decision to assume control over all military operations in Libya. According to him, U.N. Security Council’s resolution does not allow land operations, and the Alliance intends to act strictly within the Security Council mandate.

Russia-NATO Council to discuss conflict settlement in Libyahttp://en.rian.ru/world/20110329/163255976.html

01:35 29/03/2011

The Russia-NATO Council will discuss on Tuesday in Brussels the current state of affairs in Libya and ways to resolve the ongoing conflict.

Russia's envoy to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said late last week that the Council will meet "to confirm the limits that the UN Security Council placed on the participants of the conflict."

Rogozin also reiterated Russia's position saying that "holding [military] ground operations will be qualified as occupying Libya and that directly contradicts the resolution adopted by the UN Security Council."

NATO Spokesperson Oana Lungescu said on Monday that no foreign troops will be deployed and there will be no NATO presence on the ground in Libya

On Sunday, NATO began taking command of all aerial operations in Libya from the U.S.-led force. The transfer of authority will take up to three days.

The UN Security Council resolution adopted on March 17 imposed a no-fly zone over Libya and measures to protect civilians from Gaddafi's forces.

Western-led military strikes against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, whose forces have been attacking rebels in the east of the North African country since mid-February, began last Saturday.

BRUSSELS, March 29 (RIA Novosti)

March 29, 2011 11:53

Russia ready to help settle Transdniestrian conflicthttp://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=232289

MOSCOW. March 29 (Interfax) - Moscow would like to continue contributing to efforts aimed at resolving the Transdniestrian conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

"We would like to help promote this settlement process," Lavrov said at a meeting with his Moldovan counterpart Iurie Leanca in Moscow on Tuesday.

Leanca, for his part, said that ongoing consultations on possible solutions to the problem should be replaced by talks.

The Moldovan minister said that Chisinau counted on Moscow's assistance in this issue.

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Russia, Moldova FMs to discuss trade, economic ties, Dniester reg

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096297&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 00.55

MOSCOW, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Moldovan Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Yury Lyanke meet on Tuesday in Moscow to discuss trade and economic relations between the two countries as well as the Dniester region problem.

According to Russian Foreign ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich, the sides also plan to discuss ways to make integration cooperation within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States more efficient. A plan of consultations between the two countries’ foreign ministries for the current year is also scheduled for signing.

The two foreign ministers will assess prospects for boosting bilateral cooperation on different directions. Lukashevich said the sides are interested “in strengthening the legal basis of European security for maintaining stability and readiness for collective responses to present-day threats and challenges”.

Much attention will be paid to trade and economic cooperation. Russia remains one of Moldova’s leading partners. According to experts, last year bilateral trade made up about 1.5 billion dollars.

Sergei Lavrov: Russia and Kyrgyzstan interested in suppression of Afghan threats 29/03-2011 07:59, Bishkek – 24.kg news agency , by Julia MAZYKINA

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said “Russia and Kyrgyzstan are interested in suppression of Afghan threats” after meeting with Kyrgyz counterpart Ruslan Kazakbaev, according to ITAR-TASS.

Sergei Lavrov stressed the validity of the position announced by Kabul authorities, speaking about the inadmissibility of frequent civilian casualties during operations by coalition forces. These requirements must be heard, said the Russian minister

“Afghan terrorists, unfortunately, face almost no challenges as well as drug dealers. Our bilateral counterterrorism and counternarcotics cooperation with Kyrgyzstan - within the framework of the CSTO and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization - is a part of an overall effort to confront these challenges,” he said.

In turn, Ruslan Kazakbaev stressed that the situation in Afghanistan affects security in the whole region. “We are concerned by events that happen in this country, he said. This question should be discussed within the framework of the CSTO. We must develop a collective approach in addressing this issue.”

URL: http://eng.24.kg/cis/2011/03/29/17124.html

Abkhazian opposition demands not to cede even a small piece of land to Russia http://eng.expertclub.ge/portal/cnid__8084/alias__Expertclub/lang__en/tabid__2546/default.aspx

28/03/2011 16:49

"Not even a small piece of land" to be given to Russia - this was demanded from the Bagapsh regime by the Abkhazian opposition party Forum of the People's Unity. They are concerned by the information that was reported during preparation of the talks on "demarcation and delimitation" of the Abkhazian section of the Georgian-Russian border

which is taking place in Moscow today and tomorrow and to which an Abkhazian delegation was sent for from Sukhumi.

The Abkhazian opposition is extremely worried about plans to add to the Russian Federation a significant part of the Gagra district. It is 160 square km along the border river Psou. Tbilisi notes that this is a continuation of the Moscow politics of annexation of the occupied Georgian territories.

With this regard the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia stressed that there is no "border" between Russia and Abkhazia. "There is only the Georgian-Russian border, issue of demarcation and delimitation of which does not need solving as this border is clearly defined" – deputy Foreign Minster Nino Kalandadze told journalists.

"Any attempt to form an illegal, formal committee is illegitimate and illegal – she said - This has no force from the juridical point of view and it is illegal from the point of the international law. The path that the leadership of Russia continues to pursue is seizure of territories of Georgia and legalization of this seizure through creation of similar pseudo-commission".

Radiation background normal in Russian Far East – EMERCOM

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096444&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 04.45

KHABAROVSK, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian Far East reports no increases in the radiation background on Tuesday following the accidents at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan.

The emergencies ministry’s Far Eastern regional centre told Tass the radiation background comprised 12 to 19 microroentgen per hour which is below the permissible level of 30 microroentgen.

According to the ministry’s department in the Khabarovsk region, maximum radiation levels in the region are 19 microroentgen per hour, and 11 microroentgen in the regional centre of Khabarovsk.

According to EMERCOM’s territorial departments in the Amur region, the Jewish Autonomous Region and Yakutia, the radiation background there is much lower than the norm. “There is no risk for the health of Far East’s residents, and there is no danger of radioactive contamination of the environment,” EMERCOM specialists stress.

The situation is constantly monitored by 630 stationary and mobile control stations. Planes, helicopters and sea vessels take part in monitoring the situation in the air and at sea.

Radiation background normal in Russian Sakhalin

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096365&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 03.08

VLADIVOSTOK, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian Sakhalin region reports no increases in the radiation background on Tuesday following the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan.

The Sakhalin meteorological service reported that as of 9 am local time (2 am Moscow time) on Tuesday, the radiation background comprised four to 16 microroentgen per hour which is below the permissible level of 30 microroentgen.

The situation is constantly monitored by 99 radiation control stations on land, at sea and in the air. Ships of the Sakhalin coast guard, helicopters of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations and other agencies take part in monitoring the situation.

The crisis situation centre of the Sakhalin region receives data on the radiation background every two hours.

No radiation threat is forecasted in the Sakhalin region and on the Kuril Islands. There is no threat for the local population.

Embassy renders assistance to Russians staying in Japan

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096267&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 00.05

MOSCOW, March 28 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian Embassy to Japan “continues rendering assistance to Russian nationals, who have no possibility for different reasons to leave the calamity zone,” sources from the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

They said “on March 26, embassy staffers delivered humanitarian cargo (fuel and drinking water) to a group of Russians living in the city of Ishinomaki – one of the hardest-hit as a result of a tsunami on March 11”.

They also said that Russian nationals wishing to return home can turn to the offices of Aeroflot, Vladivostok-Avia and Sakhalinskiye Aviatrassy carriers, which confirm that they have plenty of vacant seats.

According to Japanese and foreign experts, the situation at the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant has aggravated of late, the sources said. However, in most north-eastern and central regions of Japan, with the exception of those adjacent to the nuclear power plant, a decline in radioactivity is registered, and on the whole it is within admissible limits, they added.

“Favorable meteorological conditions contribute to that to a great extent,” they said.

Russian South to host 500 Japanese kidshttp://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/29/48119850.html

Mar 29, 2011 10:49 Moscow Time

Krasnodar Region Governor Alexander Tkachev says that his region is prepared to receive 500 Japanese kids for rest and recreation. Japan suffered from a destructive earthquake. Tkachev said that the Japanese kids would be accommodated at the best of his region’s sanatoria on the Black Sea coast. The kids will undergo a course of rehabilitation, engage in sports activities and will go on excursions. Russia’s Kemerovo Region, in Siberia, has also suggested receiving Japanese children. Both regions already played host to Chinese children following last year’s earthquake in that country.

Russia can't export Wyoming uraniumhttp://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/article_a8da5327-e392-51ce-8579-a5699b212c49.html

By JEREMY FUGLEBERG Casper Star-Tribune The Billings Gazette | Posted: Monday, March 28, 2011 11:00 pm

CASPER, Wyo. — A Russian state-owned firm mining Wyoming uranium can’t export what it mines and would need to meet stringent requirements before it could do so, the top U.S. nuclear regulator told Sen. John Barrasso in a letter released Monday.

The written response from Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko came in response to a Barrasso letter to President Barack Obama in December.

The Wyoming Republican expressed “strong concerns” regarding NRC approval in November of the purchase of a controlling stake in Uranium One Inc. by Russian state-owned firm ARMZ that month.

Russia helps with nuclear programs in countries unfriendly to the United States, Barrasso wrote.

Uranium One owns several permits to mine Wyoming uranium and operates processing facilities and mines in Johnson and Campbell counties.

In his response to Barrasso, Jaczko said ARMZ and Uranium One lack the export license needed to ship uranium out of the country.

“In order to export uranium from the United States, Uranium One Inc. or ARMZ would need to apply for and obtain a specific NRC license authorizing the export of uranium for use in reactor fuel,” Jaczko wrote.

If the firm did request permission to export uranium, U.S. law would require Russia to certify that the uranium would be used only for peaceful purposes.

The law would also require Russia to suitably protect the nuclear fuel, not transfer it to a third country and not alter the form without U.S. consent.

If the firm did apply for an export license, that request would be made public, Jackzo wrote.

Uranium One didn’t respond to a request for comment on Monday. A spokeswoman for Barrasso referred the Star-Tribune to the senator’s letter to the president.

In his letter to Obama, Barrasso expressed concern about Russia’s “disturbing record of supporting nuclear programs in countries that are openly hostile to the United States,” specifically Iran and Venezuela.

“America’s national and energy security must be paramount in any future decisions by your administration,” Barrasso wrote.

The senator also encouraged the NRC to approve pending uranium mining permits for Wyoming, calling delays “unacceptable.”

The NRC expects to receive 16 applications for new or expanding uranium facilities by 2013. Since October 2007, the NRC has received seven facility applications for Wyoming, Jaczko wrote.

Of those, the NRC approved one license, two are nearing completion of their reviews and are expected to obtain licenses this year, two are under review, one was deferred by the applicant and another was withdrawn.

Wyoming’s once-booming uranium industry crashed in the early 1980s after the partial core meltdown at the Three Mile Island nuclear facility near Harrisburg, Pa., in 1979.

But high prices for uranium and growing need to replace uranium fuel converted from decommissioned Russian nuclear weapons have spurred a new look at Wyoming uranium.

Cameco Resources, which provides half of U.S. uranium production from its facility at its Smith Ranch/Highland mine site in Converse County, is exploring additional mine sites in the state and has announced plans to double production by 2018.

The recent nuclear reactor crisis in Japan crashed uranium mining company stocks and put a damper on a push for additional reactors in a number of countries.

Yet, the 104 existing U.S. reactors continue to consume significant quantities of uranium, fueling domestic demand.

Uranium prices sank in the wake of the Japanese incident, but they had soared in recent years, reaching $130 per pound in 2007.

Prices plummeted during the recent recession and again in recent weeks, but are still up significantly from last summer, at $60 a pound from $40. That’s up from a low of about $20 per pound in 2005-06.

The increased price and the promise of continuing demand mean uranium exploration and development in Wyoming is unlikely to halt, industry officials say.

US Russian speakers to help Russia's modernizationhttp://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/29/48119929.html

Mar 29, 2011 10:50 Moscow Time

The US Russian-speaking community can and wants to help update Russia. The aspiration is already being translated into life, and although problems do arise at times, they are being quickly addressed both by the Russian Government and the compatriots making their home in the United States. That was the keynote of a roundtable discussion

of the modernization of Russia, a discussion that took place in Washington on Monday. The discussion was held by the Coordination Council of Russian compatriots in the United States.     

Muscovites bring flowers to metro stations year after terrorist attackshttp://en.rian.ru/russia/20110329/163259645.html

Muscovites began bringing flowers to the Lubyanka and Park Kultury metro stations in Moscow early on Tuesday to commemorate victims of terrorist attacks a year ago.

Twin blasts at the Lubyanka and Park Kultury metro stations in the Russian capital occurred early on March 29 during rush hour, killing 40 people and injuring over 100.

Muscovites are laying flowers on tables covered with red tablecloth that were especially brought to the metro stations on the one-year anniversary of the attacks.

The female suicide bombers who set off the bombs were identified as Dzhanet Abdurakhmanova (Abdulayeva), born in 1992, and Mariam Sharipova, a 28 year old school teacher from the Russian North Caucasus republic of Dagestan.

MOSCOW, March 29 (RIA Novosti)

Metro bombing culprits named http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/29/48116175.html

Mar 29, 2011 09:43 Moscow Time

Russian prosecutors have determined the identities of all those complicit in last year’s twin metro bombings in Moscow.

An Investigative Committee spokesman said on Thursday that one of the culprits, 22-year-old Dagestani Gusen Magomedov,  accompanied the two suicide bombers and coordinated their actions on the  day of the attacks.  Magomedov is still on the loose and an international arrest warrant has already been issued to detain him. 

The March 29, 2010 metro bombings in Moscow left 40 people dead and  more than 100 injured.

All perpetrators, masterminds of Moscow metro blasts identified

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096698&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 08.38

MOSCOW, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - The investigation has identified all of the actual perpetrators and masterminds of terrorist attacks in the Moscow metro underground rail service that were staged a year ago at the Lubyanka and Park Kultury stations, spokesman for the Russian Investigative Committee (SK) Vladimir Markin told Itar-Tass.

“To date, investigators of the Investigative Committee of Russia have identified all the actual perpetrators and masterminds of the attacks,” he said. According to the official, six of them have been killed and one is put on the international wanted list.

“The mastermind of explosions at the Moscow Metro stations was Magomedali Vagabov - one of the leaders of subversive and terrorist underground force in the territory of the Republic of Dagestan. Vagabov, the same as the other accomplices in the crime – Aliyev, Schaschayev, Magomednabiyev, Rabadanov and Isagadzhiyev offered armed resistance during their detention and were destroyed,” Markin added.

According to him, over the year that has passed since the terrorist attacks on the Sokolniki metro line that killed 40 people, investigators of the Investigative Committee jointly with operatives the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Russian Interior Ministry have carried out a large amount of work. “They have questioned more than 500 witnesses, conducted 322 different forensic examinations, including bomb expert examination, chemical, technical and others. More than 40 searches have also been conducted,” Markin said.

The criminal case to date consists of 110 volumes. A total of 168 people have been recognised as victims in the case. The criminal investigation is continuing.

Accomplice of Moscow Metro blasts put on intl wanted list

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096639&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 08.04

MOSCOW, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - The investigation has put on the international wanted list the only surviving accomplice in terrorist attacks in the Moscow Metro underground railway service, staged a year ago at the Lubyanka and Park Kultury stations, spokesman of the Investigative Committee (SK) of the Russian Federation Vladimir Markin told Itar-Tass.

“The perpetrator of the terrorist acts is Gusen Magomedov, 22, a native of Dagestan. According to investigators, it was he who accompanied the female suicide bombers (Mariam) Sharipova and (Janet) Abdullayeva from Kizlyar to Moscow, and also managed their actions on the day of the attacks,” Markin said.

The 2010 Moscow Metro explosions were suicide bombings carried out by two women during the morning rush hour of March 29, 2010, at two stations of the Moscow Metro (Lubyanka and Park Kultury), with roughly 40 minutes interval between. At least 40 people were killed, and over 100 injured.

Ingush police find explosive belt in suspects' house

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096971&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 10.17

NAZRAN, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - A search of the house of two militants detained in Ingushetia on Monday found a suicide belt. The militants are suspected of involvement in the Domodevo airport bombing on January 24, the republic's Interior Ministry told Itar-Tass.

Police have identified the detainees. They are brothers IIes and Islam Yandiyev. "A search in house # 121 in Gazdeyev Street, Nazran, in which the detainees had been living, found a suicide belt, two self-made grenades and a hunting gun," the Interior Ministry said.

On Monday, spokesman for the National Antiterrorist Committee Nikolai Sintsovo said "in the course of the investigation into the criminal case over the January 24 terrorist attack at the Domodedovo airport, the Federal Security Service and the Investigation Committee (SK), jointly with the Defense Ministry and the Interior Ministry, planned and carried out a special operation to stop the criminal activity of the bandits who had staged the act of terror."

"As a result of a targeted air strike and a land operation, a militant's base was destroyed, at which suicide bombers had been trained, including for terrorist attacks in North Ossetia and Ingushetia. According to preliminary information, 17 bandits were destroyed, and two participants in the Domodedovo bombing were detained," Sintsov said.

March 29, 2011 11:19

Umarov, Byutukayev among Domodedovo terror suspects - Investigative Committeehttp://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=232279

MOSCOW. March 29 (Interfax) - The Russian Investigative Committee has decided to prosecute a number of insurgency leaders, including Doku Umarov and Aslan Byutukayev, in the case over the terrorist attack at Domodedovo Airport, IC spokesman Vladimir Markin told Interfax.

"IC investigators have made decisions to bring charges against active members of militant groups, including Umarov and Byutukayev," Markin said.

Also, a decision has been made to bring charges against Adam Ganizhev, Islam Yevloyev and Aslan Tsechoyev.

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Chechen warlord accused of staging airport bombinghttp://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/03/29/general-eu-russia-caucasus-violence_8379485.html

Associated Press, 03.29.11, 04:07 AM EDT

MOSCOW -- Russia's top investigative agency says it has officially accused a Chechen rebel warlord of staging the suicide bombing of the country's busiest and detained two suspected participants in the attack.

Investigative Committee's spokesman Vladimir Markin said Tuesday that the agency charged warlord Doku Umarov with organizing the Jan. 24 bombing of Moscow's Domodedovo airport that killed 37 and injured more than 180.

Umarov claimed responsibility for the attack in a video posted last month and warned many more such attacks will follow if Russia does not allow the Caucasus to become an independent Islamic state governed by Sharia law.

Markin said authorities detained two brothers in Monday's security raid in the province of Ingushetia west of Chechnya on charges of helping stage the bombing.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

March 29, 2011 09:43

Doku Umarov's bodyguards killed in Ingushetia – sourcehttp://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=232240

NAZRAN. March 29 (Interfax) - The bodyguards of one of the North Caucasus insurgency leaders, Doku Umarov, are reportedly among the militants killed during a special operation in Ingushetia, a local law enforcement told Interfax on Tuesday morning.

"Seventeen militants were killed during a special operation on Monday, preliminary reports suggest that Umarov's bodyguards are among them," the source said.

"This suggests that Umarov was also killed in the battle," the source told Interfax.

The inspection of the battle scene began at dawn on Tuesday, the identification process is not complete yet, so "it is too soon to say that notorious insurgency leader Umarov has been killed," the source said.

kk

Chechen militant leader Umarov 'may have been killed in attack'http://en.rian.ru/russia/20110329/163261230.html

09:59 29/03/2011

Russian forces say Chechen militant leader Doku Umarov could have been among those killed during fighting in the volatile North Caucasus region, the Russian daily Kommersant said on Tuesday.

Seventeen rebels were killed on Monday in an attack on a base in Ingushetia used by Islamist insurgents to train suicide bombers, Russia's anti-terror committee said. The raid involved ground forces and air strikes. Three Russia servicemen were also killed in the violence.

The identities of the militants have not yet been established, but law enforcement officials say there is a possibility that Umarov, one of Russia's most wanted terrorists, could have been killed in the attack.

Umarov, who has styled himself as the Emir of the Caucasus Emirate, claimed responsibility for the March 2010 suicide bombings on the Moscow subway, in which 40 people died. He is also said to have ordered a deadly bomb attack on Moscow's Domodedovo International Airport in January that claimed 37 lives.

There have been several false reports of the death of Umarov in recent years, including speculation that he had been killed in an airstrike in Chechnya at the turn of the year.

MOSCOW, March 29 (RIA Novosti)

Terrorist leader Doku Umarov most likely destroyed in air strikehttp://english.pravda.ru/hotspots/crimes/29-03-2011/117367-doku_umarov-0/

29.03.2011  

Doku Umarov, the leader of North Caucasus gunmen has most likely been killed in a special operation conducted in the republic of Ingushetia. Umarov was reportedly the primary target in the operation.

The process to identify the killed terrorists began on Tuesday morning. Russian news agencies reported that there were people from Umarov's team among the killed gunmen. "This gives us a reason to presume that Doku Umarov has been killed in the battle as well," a source from law-enforcement agencies of Russia's North Caucasus told Interfax. The identification has not been completed yet, and it is too early to officially confirm the death of the notorious warlord.

"It has been extremely difficult to capture and destroy Umarov because of peculiarities of the local area - mountains and forest. Umarov has been constantly changing his whereabouts as well. We hope that Umarov has been killed," the source told the Rossiiskaya Gazeta newspaper.

The head of Ingushetia, Yunus Bek Yevkurov, stated that there were indeed terrorist leaders among those gunmen killed during the special operation. However, the death of Doku Umarov has to be confirmed by investigators, he added.

"The whole group, as we hope, has been destroyed. We hope that no one escaped," Yevkurov said.

The special operation was conducted in the area near the borders of Ingushetia, Chechnya and North Ossetia. The area is said to be the location for the headquarters of the south-western sector of the so-called Imarat Kavkaz - a training camp for suicide bombers.

The death of 17 terrorists has already been confirmed officially. They have not been identified yet, but members of the special operation say that emir Khamzat, the head of the terrorist training camp, could be among the killed as well.

Nikolai Sintsov, an official spokesman for the National Anti-Terrorist Committee of the Russian Federation, stated Monday night that aviation of the Russian Air Force killed 17 terrorists in a pinpoint strike in Ingushetia. The special operation was conducted within the scope of the investigation of two explosions in the Moscow subway on March 29, 2010, which killed 40 people.

29 March 2011, 10:22

Leader of Nalchik religious extremist group eliminated http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=8320

Moscow, March 29, Interfax - The leader of a religious extremist group has been killed in a special effort in Nalchik, the information center of the National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC) reports.

"Asker Khazhirokov, born in 1987, was killed rendering resistance in an apartment. According to the Federal Security Service (FSB) department for Kabardino-Balkaria, he was the leader of a religious extremist group in Nalchik," NAC spokesman Nikolay Sintsov told Interfax.

A Makarov pistol and an RGD-5 hand grenade were discovered in the apartment.

Sintsov said FSB together with police officers checked the apartment in Severnaya Street at a tipoff and found the extremist leader there.

Experts to present to PM results of work on updated Strategy-2020

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16096963&PageNum=0

29.03.2011, 10.07

MOSCOW, March 29 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Tuesday will hold a meeting on updating the strategy of the country’s socio-economic development strategy up to 2020. The cabinet press service said that “at the meeting it is planned to summarise the results of the preliminary work of experts.”

“Russia’s important task at present is to determine the prospects and guidelines of socio-economic development for the medium and long term,” the government says. “It is also necessary to keep in mind that, despite overcoming the crisis events, Russia still has a number of structural economic problems – worn infrastructure, low labour productivity and insufficient competitiveness.”

In early February, expert groups were formed on the prime minister’s initiative at the Academy of National Economy and State University Higher School of Economics, their task is to prepare proposals on the formation of a new model of the economy

development and their broad public discussion. So far, the heads of 21 expert groups and their expert members - more than 1,100 people in total, have been approved. Among them there are specialists of relevant Russian universities and research institutes, representatives of the ministries and departments concerned, members of the presidential administration and government office of the Russian Federation, heads of regional executive bodies and leading international experts.

At a meeting with the heads of expert groups in February, Putin demanded that the widest public be involved in the discussion of the Strategy and all related proposals be heeded. “Activities of the expert group should be maximally open and democratic, it is necessary to take into account all reasonable alternative viewpoints and suggestions, nothing should be brushed aside right off the bat,” he said.

Economic advisor calls for more Russian engineershttp://en.rian.ru/russia/20110329/163263401.html

12:31 29/03/2011

The Russian president's chief economic advisor said on Tuesday that a lack of specialized engineers is delaying the modernization of Russia's ageing industries.

Arkady Dvorkovich was speaking ahead of President Dmitry Medvedev's trip to the Urals city of Magnitogorsk on Wednesday, where he will preside over a meeting of a state modernization commission.

"We have consistently been faced with a clear lack of qualified engineers in the Russian economy, and primarily in the priority spheres which the commission works in," Dvorkovich told a RIA Novosti news conference.

He said it was necessary to increase the pay of engineers, including those working outside of Moscow, to a minimum of 60,000 rubles ($2,100) a month in order to attract people to the profession.

Medvedev is leading a drive to stem Russia's unhealthy dependence on oil and gas revenues and diversify the economy, but with crumbling industries and cumbersome bureaucratic procedures still in place, the effects have been limited.

MOSCOW, March 29 (RIA Novosti)

Vladimir Putin accused of abusing his powers to enrich his friends http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/03/29/vladimir-putin-accused-of-abusing-his-powers-to-enrich-his-friends-115875-23023217/

by Adrian Shaw, Daily Mirror 29/03/2011

RUSSIAN leader Vladimir Putin has used his years in power to enrich his friends and neighbours, a damning report claimed last night.

The dossier by Russian opposition leaders alleges that people linked to Putin diverted £40billion in assets from a state-held enbergy giant. It also names Gennady Timchenko, a Russian oil trader whose fortune shot up from £1.2million in 2000 to £1.5billion in 2008.

One co-author, former deputy premier Boris Nemtsov, declared: “The leaders’ friends and relatives have become billionaires.”

There was no comment from Mr Putin last night.

Nashi Leader Sues Beaten Journalist for Slanderhttp://www.theotherrussia.org/2011/03/28/nashi-leader-sues-beaten-journalist-for-slander/

March 28th, 2011 • Related • Filed Under

Kommersant journalist Oleg Kashin is being sued for slander after posting comments online accusing youth leader Vasily Yakemenko of being involved in an attack against him, Kasparov.ru reports.

Kashin became famous after he was beaten nearly to death outside his home in Moscow last November by two men who still remain unknown. On March 23, the journalist said on his blog that Yakemenko, head of the Russian Federal Youth Affairs Agency (Rosmolodezh) and the radical youth group Nashi, was probably involved in the attack.

“As a matter of fact, I myself don’t doubt the ‘Yakemenko’ version, and I don’t have any different ones (even the story about the stolen wife clinks with all of this – actually, I heard that Yakemenko’s wife left him in November), and I don’t believe that my case is that hard to solve, and the silence of the Central Investigative Committee, in my opinion, is set on just that conclusion,” wrote the journalist.

On March 24, Rosmolodezh Press Secretary Kristina Potupchik called the remarks “filthy accusations against Rosmolodezh and Mr. Yakemenko.” The next day, Yakemenko announced he was suing Kashin for slander.

The high-profile investigation of Kashin’s beating has been notably quiet since the initial shock of the incident in November, only briefly punctuated by rumors in February that the attack had been perpetuated by an angry husband whose wife Kashin had “stolen.” Kashin denied this account and continues to insist he was beaten because of his work as a journalist.

On March 24, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev was asked about the state of the investigation into Kashin’s attack by writer and publicist Sergei Shargunov.

“Today I spoke with the head of the Investigative Committee about this topic… There’s movement there, I don’t have the right to say particular things, but there’s movement,” Medvedev said in response.

In addition, the president said the results of the investigation “should be presented not only to the victim, but also to the public, due to the large resonance.”

Oleg Kashin was attacked on November 6, 2010. He suffered skull fractures, broken shins and his fingers were maimed; one had to be partially amputated. As Kommersant Editor-in-Chief Mikhail Mikhailin said at the time: “It is totally obvious that this was a planned action, naturally, connected with Oleg’s professional work. They broke his fingers, legs; they wanted to cripple him.”

Investigators reported earlier that the primary version of the motive for the attack was Kashin’s journalistic activity. Analysts say his controversial articles about the Khimki Forest and various government officials could have provoked any number of possible attackers. President Medvedev reacted to the beating the very morning of attack and vowed to punish whoever was responsible for it, regardless of their status.

Prosecutor won't ban anti-Semitic texthttp://www.edmontonjournal.com/life/Prosecutor+anti+Semitic+text/4518487/story.html Edmonton Journal March 29, 2011 2:02 AM

Moscow's chief prosecutor has refused to ban the sale of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, one of the world's most infamous fake anti-Semitic texts, a top human rights group said Monday.

The Moscow-based For Human Rights organization had asked the city to either ban the sale of the book or to publish it with a clear notice stating that the text was a fake.

Documenting an alleged Jewish plot for taking over the world, the text was written by the Russian secret police in 1901 and then disseminated internationally in the early 20th century.

Billionaire Abramovich re-elected as speaker of the parliament of Russian Chukchi Regionhttp://www.russia-media.ru/mainmore.php?tpl=General+News&iditem=2510

[29.03.11]

Billionaire Roman Abramovich has been re-elected as the speaker of the legislature of Russia’s Chukchi Autonomous District (in the Far East of Russia).

His candidacy was unanimously approved during the first meeting of the newly elected local duma.

Abramovich was one of the three unaffiliated independent candidates who’ve made it to the local parliament in the single voting day elections of March 13th.

Russian Press at a Glance, Tuesday, March 29, 2011http://en.rian.ru/papers/20110329/163260247.html

08:49 29/03/2011

POLITICS

 

Russia President Dmitry Medvedev backed tougher checks on the income declarations of government officials, called for stronger anti-corruption measures in state procurements, and introduced new rules for implementing his orders

(The Moscow Times, Kommersant)

 

Vladimir Churov, the incumbent head of the Central Elections Commission who has steadfastly stood by poll results condemned by the opposition and independent monitors as unfair, was re-elected to a five-year term in a one-horse race

(The Moscow Times, Kommersant)

 

President Dmitry Medvedev met with a group of Russian rescuers who helped Japan to deal with consequences of the recent devastating earthquake and tsunami

(Rossiiskaya Gazeta)

 

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

 

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is set to hear a report from economic scientists and experts concerning amendments to Russia’s economic policy until 2020

(Vedomosti)

 

The conflict over control of Bank of Moscow between its management and Russia's second largest bank VTB took a a new turn on Monday after the bank's board of directors planned to fire its Chairman and VTB head Andrei Kostin

(Vedomosti, Kommersant)

 

WORLD

 

Highly radioactive water was found for the first time outside one of the reactor buildings of Japan’s quake-hit Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant and radiation has also been detected in the air and sea

(Kommersant)

 

Political scientists believe that the trial over Ukraine's former president Leonid Kuchma, accused of involvement in 2000 murder of investigative journalist Georgy Gongadze, might involve interests of other high-ranking Ukrainian politicians, while the initiators of the trial may even come from abroad

(Nezavisimaya Gazeta)

 

SOCIETY

 

Russia's population is shrinking, women still outnumber men by millions, and villagers are abandoning their homesteads to move to urban areas, according to preliminary census results

(The Moscow Times, Nezavisimaya Gazeta)

 

COURT & LAW

 

Natalya Vasilyeva, an aide to the Moscow judge who imposed a jail sentence on former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky, wrote her letter of resignation

(Nezavisimaya Gazeta, the Moscow Times)

 

REAL ESTATE

 

The transfer of government officials' flights to Sheremetyevo Airport next month while runway repairs are underway at Vnukovo is having a negative impact on real estate in the area of Leningradskoye Shosse, Penny Lane Realty analysts noted

(The Moscow Times)

 

MEDIA

 

Legendary perestroika mouthpiece Moskovskiye Novosti re-launched for the second time in its history, though its editor acknowledged that it would not be as critical of the authorities as it was in its heyday

(The Moscow Times)

 

MOSCOW

 

Two of Moscow's main airports, Vnukovo and Sheremetyevo, are to be merged and sold as part of the country's privatization program, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said

(Kommersant, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Rossiiskaya Gazeta)

Jackson and Vanik won’t do us any goodhttp://rt.com/politics/press/rossijskaya-gazeta/us-russia-companies-president/en/print/

Published: 29 March, 2011, 05:49Edited: 29 March, 2011, 05:49

Edward Verona on the outlook of the “economic reset” between Russia and the US Aleksandr Gasyuk (Washington)

Vice President Joseph Biden’s recent visit to Russia focused on “a business reset”, which Washington plans to launch after successfully “resetting” political relations between the US and Russia. Rossiyskaya Gazeta asked President of the US-Russia Business Council, Edward Verona, who had accompanied Vice President Joe Biden in his recent visit to Russia, to comment on the prospects of the “reset”.   

Rossiyskaya Gazeta:What does the US business community see as some of the main results of Joseph Biden’s visit to Russia?

Edward Verona: The main idea that was explicitly stated: the policy of the current US administration is to do everything possible to accelerate Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization. Also, in Moscow, Vice President Joe Biden had made an important official statement, that he will personally lead the White House initiative to exclude Russia from the Jackson-Vanik amendment and work on promoting the issue on the Capitol Hill. 

Moreover, there is also significance to certain things, which business representatives do not like to discuss, but which are very important nonetheless. In course of the US vice president’s visit the need to fight corruption and reduce administrative barriers to investments were also addressed.  

RG:The US vice president said that he did not consider it to be normal for Russia to hold only the 27th place on the list of America’s major trade partners. Washington had clearly

stated that it intends to “reset” the economic relations with Russia. What are the chances this initiative will succeed?

Verona: This largely depends on the efforts, put into ensuring Russia becomes a WTO member. Already three of the recent US administrations have promised to lift the Jackson-Vanik amendment, and this time, I hope the White House could keep its promise. This is truly the weightiest part in the “reset” of our economic relations.  

I believe that as soon as Russia joins the WTO, it will become a much more attractive place for investing. Then, I expect to see a considerable rise in direct foreign investment into Russia in the medium and long-term. 

RG:When we are talking about the Jackson-Vanik amendment and the US administration’s desire to lift the amendment in relation to Russia, many experts in Washington say that, considering the strengthened positions of the Republicans on the Capitol Hill, doing this will be practically impossible. What would you say to that?

Verona: Here, indeed, a lot depends on how much effort the Obama administration will want to put into this initiative. But I would like to note that many of the Republican leaders in the Congress believe that the Jackson-Vanik amendment’s action in relation to Russia does not bring any benefits to the US, and the only thing it is capable of doing is simply depriving the American companies of the advantages, which they could enjoy by doing business with Russia – a WTO member. If after Russia’s accession to the WTO, this amendment continues to be in effect, the US will be forced to issue a special statement to the WTO, explaining that it cannot maintain normal trade relations with Russia as a result of the continued action of the given amendment. Russia, in turn, has the right to do the same – and as a result, we will find ourselves stuck in a deadlock and deprived of all the benefits, which the two countries could have received as a result of 17 years of tough negotiations. This, of course, does not make any sense.    

RG:What sectors of the Russian economy, in your opinion, could be most attractive to foreign investors after Russia’s accession to the WTO? The oil and gas sector? 

Verona: In reality, oil and gas, on their own, do not have much in common with the WTO. I would cite two other examples: pharmaceuticals and microelectronics. These types of products are usually produced by large enterprises, and are not so much focused on the domestic consumption as they are on exports. And according to the conclusions of the talks on Russia’s accession to the WTO, which took place in Geneva, particularly in terms of discussion of the pharmaceutical and microelectronic manufacturer’s rights, as well as government requirements for localization of these products, I would expect to see an increased interest in Russia from these companies. 

RG:As far as I understand, the “economic reset” – is a two-way street. After all, we are not only talking about ways to create acceptable conditions for US companies in Russia, but also about ways to ensure the interest of Russian business structures in the United

States. Was this issue raised in course of Vice President Joseph Biden’s discussions with business representatives of the two states in Moscow?

Verona: Unfortunately, this topic had not been discussed, although I know at least one Russian company that would like to have this addressed. The way the issue is formulated is correct; there are Russian companies that have concerns about the US, they have their own problems. I won’t name specific company names and limit myself to mentioning the sector in which some of them operate – the steel industry.

Some of the Russian investors into the US steel sector are concerned about the possible introduction of special requests sand restrictions for steel acquisition to US companies, linked to military-industrial production. The US Congress is making attempts to adopt such legislation, which obliges defense producers to purchase only US-made steel. This, to put it mildly, is not in line with our principles of free trade and poses a real problem for a number of large Russian companies.     

Another example involves Russia’s oil and gas companies, which are interested in investing into oil and gas in the United States, particularly, production of shale gas. Will this require an approval of transactions by the US Foreign Affairs Committee, which is subordinate to the US Treasury? Yes, perhaps. Although this office has not once refused Russian companies. 

RG: Speaking of prospects, what level could the volume of the US and Russian mutual investments realistically reach in the foreseeable future. 

Verona: Since 2003, the average volume of Russian investments into the US has been at $8 billion. Thus, we are talking about approximately $1 billion annually over seven years. And it is quite an impressive amount, especially considering the fact that the Russian companies are not yet investing much outside of Russia and the CIS.

In reality, outside of the CIS, the US has been the country in which the Russian structures have made the most direct investments, which mainly relates to the earlier-mentioned steel industry. I would say that the Russian companies’ investment volume into the US is significant and this is an inspiring trend. 

Thus, if economic growth resumes, if the demand for steel products rises, and the Russian companies, above all else, start investing funds into the US oil and gas sector I, very distinctively, see the figure of $1 billion in Russia’s annual direct investments into the US. 

As for the US investments in Russia, the figures differ. Even without counting the PepsiCo’s recent purchase of Wimm-Bill-Dann, the total amount of the US direct investments into the Russian economy is, today, at about $20 billion. And if we look at the comparative statistics, that’s, relatively, not a large sum. By 2008, for example, US direct investments into Russia amounted to $17 billion, into India – $18 billion, Brazil – $45.5 billion, and $100 billion into China.    

As for the forecasts, even if we look at individual sectors, the outlook of potential US investments into Russia is quite optimistic.

Today, we have an agreement with Chevron and Exxon to conduct exploratory and production works with Rosneft, and if the partnership continues – this will require enormous primary investments of dozens of billions of dollars. Thus, in the oil and gas production field, Russia has colossal potential for foreign investments, and two of the US companies have a good chance to participate.   

PepsiCo’s total investments into our country, considering its purchase of the controlling stake in Russia’s Wimm-Bill-Dann, comes close to $6 billion. And that’s just one economic sector!  

In addition to that, I will mention the agreement between Ford and Russia’s Sollers, which are establishing a joint enterprise for the production of a sufficient number of vehicles, which meets the localization requirements of the Russian government. This, too, will require substantial investments.

© Autonomous Nonprofit Organization “TV-Novosti”, 2005 - 2011. All rights reserved.

Liberal on Paperhttp://russiaprofile.org/culture_living/34177.html

Can the Reincarnation of Moskovskie Novosti Live up to the Legacy Established by its Once Acclaimed Predecessor?

Russia Profile 03/28/2011

A liberal bastion for some Russians during the perestroika years of the Soviet Union, the “Moskovskie Novosti” (MN) newspaper brand was reborn on Monday as it published its first Russian language print issue in three years, under the auspices of state-owned RIA Novosti. At a time when newspapers across the world are folding, the MN weekly that petered out in the 2000s and was cut altogether in 2008 has been launched again as a daily.

Speaking of the niche that MN will occupy in the print press, MN chief editor Vladimir Gurevich, who was also on the acclaimed MN team of the eighties, said that titan dailies Kommersant, Izvestia, Vedomosti and Nezavisimaya Gazeta are his “main competitors” along with “a few others,” but argued that there is a clear niche for MN’s latest incarnation.

Kommersant, he said, was created for the middle and entrepreneurial classes in the

nineties, while Vedomosti panders toward investors. “We try to pay attention to what there is of a civil society, of which there have recently appeared some flashes: the various social movements, some of which are a bit wild, some barbarian, some simply destructive,” he said, then specifying “from the ‘blue buckets’ [movement] to the volunteers who helped put out the fires [in August 2010].”

“I do not place myself in the opposition, but I try to oppose everything vile,” said editor Gurevich, setting himself apart from the stances taken by Novaya Gazeta and magazine New Times, but also from the mainstream. “The worst threat to our society and country is the apathy of the best part of the population and the total indifference of the elites,” said Gurevich in comments perhaps reminiscent of the old MN’s “idealist liberalism,” as recalled by a Russia Profile blog on Friday.

Gurevich dismissed objections from critics who question the merit of a paper with a liberal legacy drawing state funding. “We came here with the “Vremya” publishing house, we have our own sources of financing. RIA is our partner, it has its own sources, state ones to be precise. But we agreed that RIA Novosti will help us with infrastructure, modern technologies, and distribution, which in my opinion it does extremely professionally. We have to provide the content of the newspaper and will be fully responsible for it. No one is going to interfere with it.” 

MN journalists from its heyday are still unsure whether MN’s glory days can replicate the cult following of the paper during the death throes of the Soviet Union. “It truly is a legendary brand, but that legend solidified during the perestroika years,” Olga Timofeyevna, the culture editor at Novaya Gazeta, who worked under Yakovlev, told Russia Profile, which is owned by RIA Novosti. “The current times are completely different. Also, the very attitude toward newspapers has changed. I imagine the paper version of the Moskovskie Novosti will be interesting, but not as popular as it used to be.”

Moskovskie Novosti, which reappears at a time when papers are disappearing due to the ascendency of the Internet, is also available on the iPad, on its own Web site, and on social networking sites Twitter, Facebook and “Vkontakte.” RIA Novosti’s experience in these fields was a major factor in cooperation with the state-owned news agency, said Gurevich. He also said that newspapers are not a “source of information,” but rather “should present its readership with an interpretation of the news, try to process it and offer its opinion.” Newspapers are the “added value,” he said, which will help MN compete with other more established dailies.

Timofeyevna questioned how much the new MN would be able to live up to the legacy of analysis established by its predecessor. “Moskovskie Novosti used to be a weekly and focused on analysis. Today it is a daily,” said Timofeyevna.

“Of course, it is difficult to speculate on its future success, but a lot of MN’s success was linked to Yegor Yakovlev,” said Timofeyevna. “Editors like him – you get them pretty

rarely. I wish them success. But if they are successful, it will be a different type of success.”

Famous Perestroika Mouthpiece Relaunches With RIA http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/famous-perestroika-mouthpiece-relaunches-with-ria/433955.html

29 March 2011By Alexander Bratersky

Legendary perestroika mouthpiece Moskovskiye Novosti relaunched for the second time in its history Monday, though its editor acknowledged that it would not be as critical of the authorities as it was in its heyday.

The newspaper, whose name translates "Moscow News," will be published daily with a circulation of 30,000. It is a joint project of the state-owned RIA-Novosti news agency and the Vremya publishing house, which was behind the now-defunct Vremya Novostei newspaper.

Vladimir Gurevich, former Vremya Novostei editor who is now editor of Moskovskiye Novosti, said in an interview published in the relaunched paper that the editorial content would focus on "civil society trends," from the "blue buckets" motorist movement to volunteer firefighters.

He promised that RIA-Novosti would not interfere with the editorial policy but admitted that the new Moskovskiye Novosti does not envision itself as an opposition newspaper.

"I won't put myself in opposition to the authorities but will try to stand against disgusting things," Gurevich said. He did not elaborate.

Moskovskiye Novosti was launched in 1930 as the official English-language mouthpiece of the Soviet Union, and it targeted foreign professionals working in the country. After adding a Russian-language edition in 1980, it developed into a legendary media brand under editor Yegor Yakovlev, who took the job in 1986. The newspaper, then a weekly, capitalized on media freedoms granted by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and had a print run of 1.6 million.

"Under Yakovlev, Moskovskiye Novosti was a team of kindred spirits," Svetlana Babayeva, who worked as a reporter under Yakovlev, said Monday.

"The journalists not only covered the topics but created them as well because topics did not exist in the Soviet era," she said by telephone.

Despite being a trailblazer for free press in Russia, Moskovskiye Novosti's popularity dwindled in the 1990s. Its Russian version closed briefly in 1991, though it was relaunched the next year.

In 2005, Moskovskiye Novosti was purchased by Yukos owners but resold the next year to Israeli businessman Arkady Gaidamak, who closed its Russian edition in 2008. Later he sold the brand to RIA-Novosti — thus closing a circle that had seen the paper separated from RIA-Novosti's predecessor, APN, in 1990 to become Russia's first independent newspaper.

National Economic Trends

Biggest Korean Fund Manager Bets Ruble Bonds Will Top Gains: Russia Credithttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-29/biggest-korean-fund-manager-bets-ruble-bonds-will-top-gains-russia-credit.html

By Kim Kyoungwha and David Yong - Mar 29, 2011 8:19 AM GMT+0200

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co., South Korea’s largest mutual fund manager, is buying Russian bonds on speculation the strongest currency rally among the Group of 20 richest nations has further to run as oil climbs.

“Russia will be among the top performing bonds as its currency appreciates and oil prices stay high,” Heo Joon-Hyuk, the head of global fixed-income investments at Mirae Asset in Seoul, which oversees $40 billion, said in a phone interview. “In emerging markets, the outlook for commodity prices is good. We like oil-producing countries with high leverage on crude prices.”

Mirae joins Pacific Investment Management Co., Goldman Sachs Asset Management and hedge fund GLG Partners LP in betting the outperformance will continue as U.S.-led air strikes on Libya stoke crude’s 14 percent rally this year, boosting the economic recovery in Russia, the world’s biggest oil exporter. The ruble is up 7.8 percent against the dollar in 2011, heading for its best quarter since 2009, while India’s rupee is little changed and Brazil’s real and the South African rand are down.

Russia’s local-currency bonds have climbed 2.5 percent this year, beating the 0.8 percent gain for China’s yuan debt, 1.6 percent increase for Indian notes and 1.5 percent advance for Brazil, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. indexes. Russia’s January 2013 ruble securities are yielding 5.76 percent, 709 basis points, or 7.09 percentage points, less than similar- maturity Brazilian government real bonds. The spread is five basis points short of the widest difference on March 22, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

‘Cheap’ Assets

Russian assets are “cheap” and the top pick among developing economies, Goldman Sachs Asset Management Chairman Jim O’Neill said March 17 at the Bloomberg Link Hedge Fund Conference in London. Ruble appreciation is “one of the biggest trades” at GLG, Bart Turtelboom, co-head of emerging markets, said at the same conference.

Mirae Asset’s flagship bond fund, the Global Securities Master Investment Trust (Bond), averaged 15 percent annual returns over the past three years, beating 91 percent of its peers, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The fund is targeting a return of as much as 8 percent this year, after handing investors an 11 percent gain in 2010 and 1.5 percent so far this year, Heo said.

The fund, with $320 million of assets as of today, is allocating the biggest chunk of its non-Asia investment to eastern Europe at 18 percent, Heo said. The fund also has 18 percent in Asian markets outside of South Korea, 15 percent in developed markets and 8 percent in the Middle East.

Ruble Falls

Russia is Mirae’s biggest foray in eastern Europe, accounting for 7.1 percent of the fund’s assets, Heo said. It’s the fund’s fourth-biggest allocation by country after 13.5 percent in South Korea, 8 percent in China and 7.3 percent in the U.S., he said.

The ruble strengthened 0.2 percent to 28.335 per dollar as of 1:30 p.m. in Hong Kong. Non-deliverable forwards, or NDFs, which provide a guide to expectations of currency movements and interest rate differentials and allow companies to hedge against currency movements, show the ruble at 28.5238 per dollar in three months, versus 28.5935 yesterday.

Russia’s dollar bonds due in 2020 rose, pushing the yield down four basis points to 4.809 percent, the lowest level since November. The price of the country’s ruble notes due in August 2016 was little changed, leaving the yield one basis point lower at 7.55 percent. The yield on Russia’s ruble Eurobond due in 2018 was little changed at 7.426 percent, the lowest since they were sold last month.

Default Swaps

The cost of protecting Russian debt, rated Baa1 by Moody’s Investors Service, its third-lowest investment grade rating, against non-payment for five years using credit-default swaps was little changed at 128 basis points, down from 177 on Nov. 30, according to data provider CMA. The contracts pay the buyer face value in exchange for the underlying securities or the cash equivalent should a government or company fail to adhere to its debt agreements.

Credit-default swaps for Russia cost 32 basis points less than contracts for Turkey, which is rated four levels lower at Ba2. Russia swaps cost as much as 22 basis points more on Nov. 29.

The extra yield investors demand to hold Russian debt rather than U.S. Treasuries rose one basis point to 168, according to JPMorgan EMBI+ indexes. The difference compares with 128 for debt of similarly rated Mexico and 169 for Brazil, which is rated two steps lower at Baa3 by Moody’s.

The yield spread on Russian bonds is 93 basis points below the average for emerging markets, down from a 15-month high of 105 in February 2010, according to JPMorgan indexes.

Pimco Bets

Mirae, which also owns local-currency debt issued by China, Brazil, and India, favors the so-called BRIC economies among developing nations as budget improvements since the 1997 Asian financial crisis and the 2008 global credit crisis “help shield their currencies from external risks” including Europe’s debt crisis and political instability in the Middle East, Heo said.

“Countries with cash flows from current-account surpluses don’t run high risks of weakness in their currencies,” he said. “However, we would prefer short-term debt than longer ones since borrowing costs are generally trending higher.”

Pimco, the Newport Beach, California-based manager of the biggest bond fund, recommended company notes in Russia, Brazil and other emerging markets where public and private debt is relatively low and rising wages give borrowers the confidence to pass on cost increases stemming from inflation, Mark Kiesel, head of corporate bond portfolio management, wrote in a report on March 21.

Brazil’s Surplus

Brazil’s trade surplus more than tripled to $1.2 billion in February, from $390 million a year earlier, on higher commodity prices.

Mirae has cut its holdings of dollar- and euro-denominated bonds on concern the U.S. will consider ending its $600 billion second round of quantitative easing and policy makers will start raising interest rates in Europe, Heo said. The company also raised the proportion of its assets held in cash to above 10 percent, from a maximum 8 percent in 2010, he said.

“We are not at a comfortable situation that we can aggressively invest,” Heo said. “We need to build a position that can benefit from a likely flattening of the curve in advanced countries. Europe is bracing for rate hikes which could pressure the U.S. to end its monetary easing.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Kyoungwha Kim in Singapore at kkim19@bloomberg.net; David Yong in Singapore at dyong@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Poole at jpoole4@bloomberg.net; Sandy Hendry at shendry@bloomberg.net.

CBR forex policy: Rouble appreciation trend less pronounced http://www.bne.eu/dispatch_text14583

Renaissance CapitalMarch 29, 2011

CBR Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvetsov made several comments on the forex market that in our view provide no support to expectations of further rouble appreciation.

Floating band widening does not necessarily imply rouble appreciation. According to Shvetsov, the regulator widened the floating band at both ends in March, with the area of no interventions remaining untouched. CBR daily interventions are fixed - on our estimates (we doubt the ends of the floating band were moved in March), the regulator purchases $150mn when the rouble is at 33.70-34.45 vs the dual-currency basket, $300mn at 32.95-33.70, and $400- 450mn at 32.45-32.95. We think the CBR increased its currency purchases within the current limits of the floating band compared with those before band widening. Thus, the potential for rouble appreciation seems less pronounced to us and is likely to be limited by our target level of 33.25.

Planned interventions as an instrument for injecting liquidity into the banking system. Inside the floating band, there is still a distinction between planned interventions (implying no shift in the ends of the band) and accumulated interventions. Planned interventions are nonlinear and depend on the current account, forecast export revenue sales, and the monthly budget execution. Thus, the CBR uses planned interventions to moderate the rouble's dependence on the oil price. Nevertheless, using budget estimates as one of the inputs reflects another CBR priority - the regulator is prepared to buffer changes in banking system liquidity that are caused by the federal budget. Therefore, the CBR fosters a favourable environment for domestic sovereign borrowing by increasing planned interventions when there is wide-scale sterilisation of banking-system liquidity by the budget.

Reserve Fund accumulation will lead to an increase in targeted interventions, which is negative for the rouble.

The CBR again showed its concern over a potential major squeeze in banking-system liquidity, which is the likely consequence of MinFin's stated intention to accumulate an extra RUB700bn in the Reserve Fund. This may technically take place after the Budget Code is amended this summer (after the 2011 budget parameters become clearer). If this

occurs, the CBR will do its best to soften the impact of liquidity outflows to the Reserve Fund. One of its measures will likely be an increase in planned forex interventions, which is unlikely to provide support to the rouble at the end of 2011.

February data remain enigmatic. According to Shvetsov, the CBR purchased about $4.6bn in March, with no shift in the floating band, we think. In February, the CBR purchased $4.6bn, with planned interventions accounting for $3.7bn of this (the floating band was shifted once). Given recent comments, these data remain a riddle.

Anton Nikitin

CBR interest rate policy: Inflation non-monetary in nature http://www.bne.eu/dispatch_text14583

Renaissance CapitalMarch 29, 2011

CBR Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvetsov yesterday (28 March) made a few comments on inflation and potential interest rate changes.

Inflation expectations will depend on non-monetary drivers. According to the CBR, crops remain a key driver of inflation expectations. If this year crops remain at an average level, then inflation may be at 6-7%. This implies that the CPI is primarily driven by non-monetary factors and not policy decisions taken by the CBR. Therefore, the February increase in rates should be considered as a signal that the regulator pays attention to the CPI, but the influence of its anti- inflationary tools is limited due to the non-monetary nature of inflation.

Fixed REPO rate is likely to stay unchanged if the CBR decides to raise rates. CBR decisions are discretionary in nature, hence there is no way of estimating at which level rates will be at in a few months. Shvetsov stated that the regulator keeps on searching for an optimal gap of changes in interest rates. We think it is unlikely that the gap will be widened, and so Shvetsov's statement is a signal that it may be cut by means of raising deposit rates. The CBR considers a fixed REPO rate as an effective ceiling for interbank rates - this implies that the gap may be reduced by a simultaneous hike in all interest rates except the fixed REPO rate. Despite the fact that interbank rates are defined by the deposit rate, the tighter monetary policy signal will be noticed by non-residents as well, as they see the refinancing rate as being a benchmark for CBR interest rate policy.

Abundant liquidity will depend on measures from MinFin. Shvetsov confirmed that there are no threats to abundant liquidity on a horizon of the next few months. The CBR deliberately makes use of deposit operations instead of the OBR (which does not offer solid premiums) as a sterilisation tool. As soon as MinFin starts to build the Reserve Fund, the liquidity surplus will vanish, and the current structure of sterilisation tools will help to avoid major liquidity changes that may take place if OBRs are widely used.

Anton Nikitin

Russia is Opening the Door Wider to Private Investment in Natural Resources, Banking and Health Care in an Effort to Lure Foreign Investors http://russiaprofile.org/business/34137.html

By Tai Adelaja Russia Profile 03/28/2011

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Friday put his weight behind a move to amend the country's tough Strategic Sectors Law, which restricts the level of foreign investment in 42 sectors of the Russian economy. After almost four years of resisting such a move, the prime minister finally endorsed a groundbreaking proposal that would allow foreigners to buy up to 25 percent of strategic companies without obtaining mandatory approval from the government.

Russia’s law on foreign investments, which took effect in May 2008, classifies 42 sectors of the economy as strategic. In addition to defense, energy, aircraft and aerospace and critical infrastructure – which have long been deemed strategic – the new law added certain natural resource deposits, radio, television, and fishing to the list of strategic sectors. Under the law, foreign investors seeking to acquire over 10 percent stakes in companies working in those sectors had to receive permission from the government as well as the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS). However, as part of ongoing efforts to improve the investment climate, the government commission on regulating foreign investment, which Putin heads, decided at a meeting on Friday to lower the bar for foreign investors by raising the threshold from 10 percent to 25 percent.

The measures approved by the commission on Friday were prepared by FAS as part of the second set of the long-awaited revisions to tough laws on foreign investment in strategic mineral fields. "When you buy a 25 percent stake in a company engaged in mineral resources, you will not need the permission of FAS and our commission,” Putin said at the meeting. “At present, this threshold is fixed at 10 percent." FAS Chief Igor Artemyev said a 25-percent stake is enough to enable investors to “exercise significant influence over the management of any company” – a concession long sought for by foreign investors. He explained that foreign investors that come with their own technologies generally do not require the approval of the governmental commission for limited access to strategic natural resource deposits.

Putin said he hopes the gesture will stimulate foreign investors’ appetite for Russia, amid the “growing worldwide competition for investment.” He said the commission must raise the level of foreign direct investment (FDI) to the pre-crisis level of between $60 billion and $70 billion per year. The prime minister's optimism echoes last year's forecast by his Finance Minister, Alexei Kudrin. In February 2010, Kudrin predicted that Russia could see pre-economic crisis levels of FDI by 2013. He said FDI stood at $70 billion before

the global economic recession swept the country in 2008 and reduced the figure to $30 billion.

The government has intensified efforts to attract foreign capital as it struggles to reverse a systematic fall in foreign investment sparked by the 2008-09 financial crisis. Preliminary statistics indicate that FDI in Russia fell by 50 percent to between $12 billion and $14 billion in 2010, Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin told a February 18 economic forum in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk. "It is not enough. In better times it could have reached $27 billion," Kudrin said. Foreign direct investment in Russia was about $8 billion in the first nine months of 2010, compared with $16 billion in 2009, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Research.

As part of a two-pronged approach - a combination of sweeping liberalization measures and pro-FDI institutional reforms - Putin on Friday ordered the simplification of the procedure of reviewing applications from foreign investors. Investors, he said, should be able to resolve outstanding issues with FAS, bypassing the government’s Commission on Foreign Investment. He also directed the commission to “get rid of ineffective or clearly excessive procedures” in a bid to create a comfortable environment for companies seeking to invest their money [and] knowledge in the Russian economy. FAS is currently reviewing 198 investors’ applications related to transactions in strategic sectors, ITAR-Tass reported.

The core strategy for the government, however, is creating strategic relationships with foreign companies to speed up improvements in the country’s industry through transfer of modern technology and know-how. One of the 12 cases considered by the commission on Friday were investment plans by French engineering giant Alstom, builder of most of the world's high-speed trains. Alstom, which has already partnered with train-maker TransMashHolding (TMH), is seeking to modernize facilities at Tver Carriage and Bryansk Engineering Works that will produce trains, passenger cars and new rolling stock for the Russian market. Putin praised the French company, saying that rail-cars produced by it will be used for transportation on the Moscow-Sochi route during the Olympic Games in 2014. "In addition, there are future plans to build railcars for the [country’s] subway," Putin said before directing the commission to approve a deal between Alstom and Transmashholding to implement development programs and technological re-equipment of Tver Carriage and Bryansk Engineering Works.

In the past, top government officials including the prime minister have been reluctant to open up the country’s vast natural resources to foreign investors, arguing that such sectors are crucial to national security. In 2007, when the Strategic Investment Law was being prepared, the commission readily brushed off suggestions from industry leaders - including from Industry and Trade Minister Viktor Khristenko – to set the threshold at 25 percent for foreign investors and 50 percent for Russian companies, Kommersant reported on Saturday. However, the global economic downturn coupled with the depletion of reserves in Russia's traditional oil stronghold, is forcing the government to diversify the resource-based economy in part by relaxing tough laws on foreign investment.

Faced with the prospect of a rapidly dwindling foreign investment, Putin vowed last year to reverse the negative trend. "This year we want to break this tendency, and to do this we are acting in several directions at once," Putin told the EurAsEC intergovernmental council meeting in May, RIA Novosti reported. "The issue is about improving the investment climate, abolishing abundant bureaucratic limitations, revising the legal framework that regulates foreign investment in strategic branches of the Russian economy," the agency quoted Putin as saying. The prime minister said he did not exclude the possibility that customs duties on imports would also gradually come down, and that other protectionist measures implemented in the wake of the economic downturn would be eliminated.

Since then, the government has swung into action, initiating a series of measures to reduce administrative barriers to investment. Last month, the government submitted a raft of amendments to the Strategic Investment Law to the State Duma. Measures envisaged in the package, which passed its first reading in the lower house of parliament last week, include liberalization of control over foreign investments in food and medical industries, the banking sector and extraction industries, FAS chief Artemyev said. “The amendments will also reduce administrative barriers by improving the procedures for filing and processing petitions,” he said.

Business, Energy or Environmental regulations or discussions

Russian Power Sector Consolidates In $2.77 Billion Share Swaphttp://www.foxbusiness.com/industries/2011/03/29/russian-power-sector-consolidates-277-billion-share-swap/

By Alexis Flynn

Published March 29, 2011

| Dow Jones Newswires

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Russian state-controlled high-voltage transmission firm Federal Grid Co. of Unified Energy System (FEES.RS) said Tuesday it will exchange minority holdings in some 22 electricity utilities for a stake of up to 20%-minus-one-share in peer Inter RAO EES OAO (IRAO.RS), in a deal that effectively consolidates a large part of the country's heavily fragmented power market.

State-owned utility Inter RAO, whose board is headed by Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, has made a series of acquisitions in recent months as it seeks to boost the efficiency of the country's energy infrastructure.

Federal Grid said Inter RAO will issue fresh equity totaling 1,470 billion new shares, which would then be given to Federal Grid in return for its stakes in up to 22 power firms formed during the complex privatization of the country's giant electricity market.

In a separate transaction, Federal Grid subsidiary LLC Power Index Energetiky will acquire up to 413.62 billion of Inter RAO's newly issued shares in return for its own stakes in various electricity-generating companies.

The $2.77 billion asset swap, which includes Federal Grid's interests in electric power generators RusHydro (HYDR.RS) and Bashkirenergo (BEGY.RS), will leave the company in control of up to 20% minus one share of Inter RAO, and combined with its affiliates, up to a blocking stake total of 25%.

Federal Grid, which owns the world's largest transmission grid, Monday completed a technical listing of its global depository receipts on the London Stock Exchange.

Copyright © 2011 Dow Jones Newswires

Mechel seeks to buy Raspadskaya coal company for $1.8-2.3 blnhttp://en.rian.ru/business/20110329/163263129.html

12:19 29/03/2011

MOSCOW, March 29 (RIA Novosti) - Mechel, Russia's leading producer of coal for the steelmaking industry, is in talks over the purchase of the Siberia-based Raspadskaya coal company but is only prepared to pay a third of the sum requested by Raspadskaya shareholders, sources familiar with the negotiations said on Tuesday.

The Raspadskaya shareholders value the company at $6 billion while Mechel is ready to pay only $1.8-2.3 billion for the miner, which has hindered negotiations, the sources said.

Raspadskaya is a good asset but is overpriced considering the difficulties, which the company is currently experiencing and which explain the shareholders' intention to sell it, three sources in the industry told RIA Novosti.

"The negotiations are proceeding with great difficulty. Raspadskaya wants a valuation of $6 billion while Mechel is unwilling to pay more than $1.8-2.3 billion," one of the sources said.

Raspadskaya, the largest producer of steelmaking coal in Russia in 2009, had to cut coal output significantly after a series of explosions hit its key mine in west Siberia in May 2010, killing 91 miners.

Mechel told RIA Novosti it was interested in Raspadskaya but had not made any price offer so far.

Russia's EuroSibEnergo may hold IPO in autumnhttp://en.rian.ru/business/20110329/163263107.html

12:16 29/03/2011

MOSCOW, March 29 (RIA Novosti) - EuroSibEnergo generating firm, the power unit of Russian aluminum tycoon Oleg Deripaska's business empire, may revive its initial public offering plans in autumn, its Chairman Andrei Likhachyov said on Tuesday.

"We are not conducting any processes connected with the placement, but anything may happen in the autumn," Likhachyov said.

EuroSibEnergo planned to hold an IPO in Hong Kong last December but the plans collapsed as the company's strategic investor, Yangtze Power Co, China's largest listed hydropower corporation, failed to get Beijing's permission to participate in the deal and establish a joint venture for the construction of power generating facilities in Siberia.

EuroSibEnergo planned to offer 25% of its shares and raise about $1.5 billion in the IPO, valuing the company at $6 billion.

The company had prepared for going public in 2009, Likhachyov said.

OTP Bank issues RUB 2.5 bln bond in Russiahttp://bbjonline.hu/economy/otp-bank-issues-rub-25-bln-bond-in-russia_56863

MTI – Econews

Monday 02:40, March 28th, 2011

OTP Bank completed its first bond issue in Russia on March 25, selling RUB 2.5 billion (EUR 62.7 million) of papers against offers of RUB 17 billion, the bank told MTI on Monday.

The three-year bonds pay a fixed annual 8.25%, 170bp over the yield of the three-year Russian government security.

OTP Bank will use the proceeds from the issue to finance consumer lending in Russia. The issue was also intended to diversify financing, the bank said.

The bonds will be listed on Russia's MICEX exchange on March 29.

After-tax profit of OTP Bank's Russian unit rose to 20.5 billion in 2010 from HUF 3.1 billion in 2009, deputy-CEO Laszlo Bencsik said early in March, after the bank published

its Q4 report. OTP Bank Russia is runner-up on the market for consumer loans and number four on the market for credit cards, he said.

March 29, 2011 11:04

Sberbank could convert 4% of shares into ADRs in 2011, 25% in all – sourcehttp://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=232264

MOSCOW. March 29 (Interfax) - Sberbank (RTS: SBER) plans to convert around 4% of its shares in to American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) this year and approve a program for to convert the upper limit of 25% in total, a source close to the bank told Interfax.

"They plant this year to issue depositary receipts for half the 7.6% stake to be privatized," the source said.

Pr

Vozrozhdeniye Q4 net profit down at 184 mln rbls y/yhttp://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/29/russia-vozrozhdeniye-results-idUSWLA661620110329

4:04am EDT

MOSCOW, March 29 (Reuters) - Vozrozhdeniye (VZRZ.MM: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), a top-30 Russian lender, posted 184 million roubles ($6.50 million) net profit in the last quarter of 2010, the lender said on Tuesday.

Reuters poll of analysts expected net profit of 202.6 million roubles, down from 375 million roubles in the fourth quarter 2009. [ID:nLDE72O14S]

The full year net profit came at 581 million roubles, while analysts expected 594 million roubles.

(Reporting by Katya Golubkova, editing by Lidia Kelly)

AMCU permits Severstal to buy over 25pct in Severstal Ukrainehttp://www.steelguru.com/russian_news/AMCU_permits_Severstal_to_buy_over_25pct_in_Severstal_Ukraine/197871.html

Tuesday, 29 Mar 2011

It is reported that the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine has permitted Russia OJSC Severstal to acquire a stake in the statutory fund of Dnipropetrovsk based Severstal Ukraine Ltd which would give the buyer over 25% of the votes in the management body of the company.

Severstal Ukraine which was founded in 2007 is a subsidiary of Russia OJSC Severstal. As of October 25, 2010 the key shareholders in the company were Severstal Trade GmbH with a 51% stake and Hektar Ltd.

Severstal decided from November 1, 2010 to unite two its companies in Ukraine Severstal Ukraine Ltd which is part of the sales division of Severstal Russian Steel and OJSC Dniprometyz.

Facebook’s Russian Investors Start Second Fund, Vedomosti Sayshttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-29/facebook-s-russian-investors-start-second-fund-vedomosti-says.html

By Yuliya Fedorinova - Mar 29, 2011 6:41 AM GMT+0200

Russian billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Yuri Milner, who control 10 percent of Facebook Inc. through their DST Global fund, started a second fund to invest in Internet companies, Vedomosti reported.

DST Global 2, started with “several hundreds of millions of dollars,” owns shares in coupon website Groupon Inc. and may buy 5 percent of European online music site Spotify Ltd. for $50 million, the Moscow-based newspaper reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.

To contact the reporter on this story: Yuliya Fedorinova at yfedorinova@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Brad Cook at bcook7@bloomberg.net

TPG, VTB Seek Lenta Auction to End Russian Feud, Vedomosti Sayshttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-29/tpg-vtb-seek-lenta-auction-to-end-russian-feud-vedomosti-says.html

By Yulia Fedorinova - Mar 29, 2011 6:51 AM GMT+0200

TPG Capital and VTB Capital, which control 30.8 percent of Russian supermarket chain OOO Lenta, challenged rival shareholder August Meyer to an auction to end their dispute over management of the company, Vedomosti said.

TPG and VTB want to bid against Meyer, who owns about 41 percent of Lenta, for all the shares held by the three entities, the Moscow-based newspaper said today, citing a letter TPG and VTB sent to Meyer. The auction would go in steps of $50 million, with a starting price based on a $2 billion valuation for the whole company, Vedomosti said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Yuliya Fedorinova at yfedorinova@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Brad Cook at bcook7@bloomberg.net

RusForest acquires Nord Timber Grouphttp://www.ttjonline.com/story.asp?sectioncode=17&storycode=66225&c=2

29 March, 2011

Russian forestry and sawmilling business RusForest is acquiring the Nord Timber Group (NTG) in a move which will “jump-start” the former’s transition into a major world player.

RusForest, which is paying for the acquisition through a new issue of shares, said the purchase will increase its presence in north-west Russia.

Arkhangelsk-based NTG has forest leases exceeding 1.1 million ha of spruce and pine, said to be of similar quality to those found in northern Sweden. It also has an 80,000m³ per year capacity sawmill and a planing mill.

Following the acquisition, RusForest will control an annual allowable cut of about 2.8 million m³, positioning the company as one of the largest forest-controlling companies in Russia in terms of cutting rights.

RusForest expects its sawn wood output to grow to around to 800,000-850,000m³ per year over the next four to five years.

RPT-UPDATE 1-AFI Development makes 2010 profit, targets Moscowhttp://in.reuters.com/article/2011/03/29/russia-afi-idINLDE72S0B220110329

12:25pm IST

(Repeats to additional Reuters clients)

* Posts FY $25.88 mln profit vs $2.66 mln loss in 2009

* Sees positive signs in Moscow 2011 real estate market

(Adds Chairman, company comment, detail)

MOSCOW, March 29 (Reuters) - Russia-focused Israeli real estate firm AFI Development (AFIDLq.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Tuesday it expects a positive year ahead for Moscow's recovering real estate market after returning to profit in 2010.

AFI, controlled by billionaire diamond dealer Lev Leviev, was hit hard by the real estate meltdown that froze Russian markets in 2008 and 2009 but restarted work on postponed major projects last year as the sector showed signs of recovery.

"We expect continued positive market trends throughout 2011 with Moscow, in particular, expected to benefit from further improvement in market conditions, resulting in higher growth in all real estate segments compared to other parts of Russia," the company said in the statement.

AFI raised its portfolio value 20 percent to $2.31 billion last year and made $25.88 million in profit as opposed to a $2.66 million loss the year before, mainly due to rising rental levels in Moscow.

The group also gained from the completion of flagship project AFIMALL City, a major new retail centre in Moscow and one of the largest new retail developments in Europe to open in 2011. [ID:nLDE7231I5]

"We look forward to 2011 as another year of growth in the Moscow property sector. We anticipate a significant level of rental revenue this year coming from our newly opened retail project AFIMALL City," Lev Leviev, chairman of AFI Development, said.

Leviev added the company plans to proceed with the development of its core project and will selectively activate new ones to meet consumer demand this year.

Africa Israeli Investments (AFIL01.TA: Quote, Profile, Research) became AFI's sole major shareholder with a 64-percent stake in January, after it bought general director Alexander Khaldey's 9.7-percent share for $129 million. [ID:nLDE70P0OA] (Reporting by Nastassia Astrasheuskaya, Editing by John Bowker)

Activity in the Oil and Gas sector (including regulatory)

Russia May Make Oil Companies Maintain Output, Vedomosti Reportshttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-29/russia-may-make-oil-companies-maintain-output-vedomosti-reports.html

By Yulia Fedorinova - Mar 29, 2011 6:57 AM GMT+0200

Russia’s government may make it illegal for oil companies to reduce crude output and oil-product sales when “there’s demand” and sales won’t be loss-making, Vedomosti reported.

The measure is included in the latest version of a new law on oil extraction, refining and transporation that is being debated in the government, the Moscow-based newspaper said, citing a copy of the drafted dated March 1.

To contact the reporter on this story: Yuliya Fedorinova at yfedorinova@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Brad Cook at bcook7@bloomberg.net

Delay seen in building of Russia oil pipeline to China –paperhttp://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFLDE72S01V20110329

Tue Mar 29, 2011 5:06am GMT

MOSCOW, March 29 (Reuters) - Construction of one of Russia's new pipelines to transport Arctic oil to China may be postponed due to an internal conflict between companies involved, the daily Kommersant reported on Tuesday.

A disagreement on financing between Transneft TRNF_p, which is in charge of the project, and oil majors LUKOIL , Gazprom Neft and TNK-BP , which have agreed to provide funds, may shelve the project until 2016, Kommersant reported, citing sources from Transneft.

Transneft, Russia's pipeline monopoly, said in September it would begin engineering work on the pipeline in January for commission in 2014 [ID:nLDE6851BO].

The new pipeline would transport Arctic oil to a trunk line further south for onward shipment toward East Siberia, and eventually China. (Writing by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

Key Yamal oil pipeline may be delayed by three years http://www.bne.eu/dispatch_text14583

UralSibMarch 29, 2011

Zapolyarnoye-Purpe construction may only begin in 2016. Kommersant reports that Transneft (TRNFP RX - Sell) and a pool of oil companies including Gazprom Neft (SIBN RX - Hold), LUKOIL (LKOH RX - Hold), and TNK-BP (TNBP RU - Hold) disagree on the planned tariffs and volumes for the Zapolyarnoye-Purpe pipeline project. The 0.9 mln bpd pipeline was supposed to go into operation in three stages in 2013-15, but the start of construction may now be delayed by three years or more. There is also a risk of upward capex revision from the current estimate of RUB120 bln ($4.2 bln).

Pipeline a prerequisite for Yamal oil production. Zapolyarnoye-Purpe is due to connect a number of promising Yamal fields to Transneft's existing system, including Gazprom Neft's and TNK-BP's Messoyakha group, LUKOIL's Pyakyakhinskoye, and TNK- BP's Suzun, Tagul, and Russkoye fields. The three companies agreed jointly to finance the pipeline's construction and sell it to Transneft after 2015. However, Transneft is now insisting that the companies guarantee a volume schedule until 2030, a re- quirement that they see as unrealistic at this early stage of the fields' development.

Gazprom Neft, LUKOIL, TNK-BP's medium-term plans at risk. We were never as optimistic on the companies' Yamal produc- tion plans, as the Zapolyarnoye-Purpe initial completion schedule suggested, so the possible pipeline delay comes as no surprise. We expect the three companies' Russian oil output to increase at a CAGR of 1% or less in 2011-15.

Alexei Kokin

Rosneft's net profit dips in FY10

http://www.rbcnews.com/free/20110329105809.shtml

      RBC, 29.03.2011, Moscow 10:58:09.Rosneft's RAS net profit dropped 24% year-on-year to RUB 191.92bn (approx. USD 6.76bn) in 2010, according to the company's report.

      The oil major's net profit in October-December 2010 increased 16% on the quarter to RUB 65.57bn (approx. USD 2.31bn). The rise in net profit is attributable to higher oil prices and the ruble's appreciation against the dollar.

      The company earlier posted a RUB 126.34bn net profit (approx. USD 4.45bn) for January-September 2010.

Standard Life Investments tells BP to drop Rosneft deal share swaphttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/8412012/Standard-Life-Investments-tells-BP-to-drop-Rosneft-deal-share-swap.html

BP is losing shareholder support as it attempts to salvage the share-swap part of the $16bn (£10bn) Arctic oil deal with Rosneft, the 75pc state-owned Russian energy groupBy Roland Gribben 6:00AM BST 29 Mar 2011

Comment

Standard Life Investments, one of BP's top 10 investors with a 1.6pc holding, has withdrawn its backing after last week's ruling by a Swedish arbitration court that the exploration side of the pact broke an agreement with TNK-BP, the British group's existing Russian joint venture.

BP wants to push ahead with the share-swap and on Monday plans to ask the court to rule on whether that also breaches the TNK-BP shareholder agreement. The swap would see BP buy a 9.5pc stake in Rosneft, taking its holding to 11pc, while the Russian group would take 5pc of the UK oil giant.

However, David Cumming, Standard Life's UK equities head, questioned whether the exchange alone made sense. "At the moment we don't think BP has got a Plan B so unless there is some clear commercial benefit to BP shareholders for doing this deal...we're not supportive at the moment," he told the BBC.

He is the first major shareholder to publicly voice opposition since the Swedish ruling. But another top 10 investor also expressed reservations. "I'm not sure the company has really articulated why such a transaction in isolation would be a good idea," he said. "Share swaps alone rarely do anything positive."

Other investors have been prepared to accept the BP view that the court decision was a "nothing event" because the Rosneft deal had the backing of the Russian Government.

Mr Cumming said he believed other shareholders "weren't particularly keen on the initial deal", adding the Rosneft agreement could collapse unless BP finds a solution to the TNK-BP problem. "At the moment I think the deal's in trouble," he added.

BP feels it continues to enjoy the support of most shareholders and Sergey Shmatko, Russian energy minister, said on Monday that he expected the share exchange to be completed shortly.

The Russian oligarchs operating as Alfa Access Renova who own the other half of TNK-BP insist the tribunal ruling took account of the share swap, the exploration arrangement and the strategic partnership. AAR argues any share swap should be seen as a "strategic investment".

There were signs another Rosneft partnership deal was running into problems. Chevron is reported to be looking at whether to go ahead with the $32bn Black Sea exploration project with Rosneft.

Sechin turns up heat as Rosneft insists will push through BP deal http://www.bne.eu/storyf2594/Sechin_turns_up_heat_as_Rosneft_insists_will_push_through_BP_deal

bne March 28, 2011

Rosneft issued more menace-laden warnings on March 25 as it insisted it will push through its planned tie-up with BP in full and has no plans to allow the Russian oligarchs in the TNK-BP joint venture, who were responsible for a Swedish arbitration court blocking the BP-Rosneft tie-up, into the deal.

In January, the two sides signed off on a deal that would have seen BP own 9.5% of Rosneft's shares, while the Russian group would have taken a 5% stake in BP, and form an exploration and production joint venture to explore for oil in the Arctic. This angered the holding company Alfa-Access-Renova (AAR), which owns 50% in the TNK-BP joint venture and represents four of the most powerful businessmen in Russia, because they allege the tie-up violates a shareholder agreement inside the JV that either partner must run all Russian projects via TNK-BP. An independent arbitration tribunal in Stockholm agreed, finding that the deal breached agreements in place and extended an injunction on the tie-up.

AAR CEO Stan Polovets said in an e-mailed statement: "Wilfully ignoring the provisions of the shareholder agreement was a serious misjudgement by BP that has severely damaged the relationship between the TNK-BP shareholders; it has also harmed BP's reputation in Russia. We expect [BP CEO] Bob Dudley to make every effort to rectify the situation and rebuild the trust that has been lost."

For its part, BP said in a statement it "will now apply for a determination whether the share swap may proceed on its own." It added that it hopes to "[find] a way to resolve its differences with its Russian partners to allow these important Russian Arctic developments to proceed in future."

There was less ameliorative talk out of Rosneft. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin and CEO of Rosneft, a man who has been dubbed the scariest in Russia in the past, insisted the company will push through the full tie-up, and warned that the company could seek compensation should the Arctic project it plans to carry out with BP fall through.

Sechin reminded reporters on March 25 that the Swedish court only granted a temporary restraint. "The court didn't block [the deal], it extended the injunction until April 7. We must await the court's verdict."

The original agreement signed in January sets April 14 as the date to ink the final deal, but the pair are said to be looking at moving the deadline.

No match

Whilst the press has been discussing the failure of the deal, you'd be hard-pressed to find an analyst in Moscow who believes that the Kremlin - which is essentially the power standing behind Rosneft – won't force the deal through, one way or the other. The oligarchs inside AAR are very powerful - but no match for the likes of Sechin.

The Arctic exploration is a key plank in the Kremlin’s energy strategy. The Rosneft-BP deal is also a blueprint for tie-ups that are central to Russia's plans to modernise and diversify the economy: large international companies are offered access to Russia's rich natural resource basis through minority stakes in state-owned companies and in return the Russian company gets access to world class technology.

The deputy PM went on to yet again denigrate the idea that TNK-BP could take BP's place in the deal and denied there were any talks to buy out the oligarchs. "Rosneft is not holding any talks with AAR. We haven’t received any proposals regarding these proceedings and are not holding any talks," Sechin said.

Answering a question on whether TNK-BP could participate in Rosneft's deal with BP, Sechin said that TNK-BP's shares are of no interest for the swap deal, as they aren't traded in New York, London or Frankfurt.

There were more reports on March 28 that BP could be forced to spend more than €10bn to buy out its partners in TNK-BP. Sources close to the dispute were cited by The Scotsman on March 28 as saying that Mikhail Fridman, chief executive of TNK-BP and the main partner in AAR, has told BP to buy out him and his colleagues, a claim denied by AAR.

West Siberia boost for Exillonhttp://www.upstreamonline.com/live/article250065.ece

Russia-focused UK independent Exillon Energy has found more oil with an appraisal well drilled on its East EWS I field in West Siberia.

Upstream staff  28 March 2011 08:01 GMT

The probe, with pre-drill estimates of 13.3 million barrels of possible reserves, was designed to test a five square-kilometre northern extension to the field.

Having struck the Jurassic P reservoir at 1858 metres, wireline logging data and oil shows confirmed the presence of 13.9 million barrels of gross oil pay.

Testing of the well will now be carried out and is due to be completed by the end of April.

Published: 28 March 2011 08:01 GMT  | Last updated: 28 March 2011 08:06 GMT

Transneft's net profit rises in 2010 http://www.rbcnews.com/free/20110329120145.shtml

      RBC, 29.03.2011, Moscow 12:01:45.Transneft's net profit under RAS surged 25.7% to RUB 4.89bn (approx. USD 172m) in 2010, the oil pipeline monopoly said in a report today.

      The upturn in profit was attributed to a rise in transportation volumes, higher oil transportation tariff, and higher interest on funds deposited by the company.

Transneft minimum state ownership may be set at 75% http://www.bne.eu/dispatch_text14583

CitiMarch 29, 2011

The Energy Ministry's law draft on crude oil stipulates that the minimal state ownership in Transneft should be set at 75%, Vedomosti reports. The article doesn't specify whether this threshold refers to voting or total capital.

Transneft owns 100% of the company's voting shares or 78.11% of the total capital. Earlier, the Finance Ministry suggested decreasing state ownership in the company to 51% but met strong opposition from the Economy and Energy Ministries and Transneft's management, which argued that lowered state ownership may prompt repurchase of its Eurobonds. There are "change of control" clauses in Transneft's Eurobonds agreements: three issues are putable when government ceases to control 100% of voting capital and two issues are putable when the state ownership falls below 75% of voting capital. We do not believe, however, that these clauses represent a significant obstacle for privatization as the issues are trading above par and given the company's financial resources ($8.8bn at the end of 2Q10).

Transneft's privatization plans were put on hold indefinitely last year and a Vedomosti source in the government said that they are not being discussed at this time. If the 75% threshold mentioned in the law draft refers to the voting capital, this could imply that the government is still considering the possibility of reducing state ownership in future. We are sceptical about such a possibility, however, as the Economy Ministry has been against the idea.

Transneft discloses in-line 2011 financials forecast http://www.bne.eu/dispatch_text14583

CitiMarch 29, 2011

Transneft published on its website detailed forecasts for the company's 2011 financials, including sales, operating costs, capital expenditures and financial investments. Operating profit (ex-inventory sales and other non-core items) is expected at Rbl170,8bn, -0.4% to our estimate, total capital expenditure is guided at Rbl243.1bn, +0.7% to our estimate. Transneft also expects that in 2011 its acquisitions and financial investments will amount to Rbl83bn, which is likely to reflect transactions related to stakes in Primorsk and Novorossiysk export terminals (not included in our model). The company didn't specify whether these number account for possible 2-3% tariff hikes this summer (not included in our model). We view the numbers as neutral to our forecasts.

Ildar Khaziev

Gazprom

Gazprom considers internal upgradeshttp://www.upi.com/Science_News/Resource-Wars/2011/03/28/Gazprom-considers-internal-upgrades/UPI-44531301324602/

Published: March. 28, 2011 at 11:03 AM

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, March 28 (UPI) -- Russian energy company Gazprom said it was looking to overhaul significant parts of its natural gas transmission system to St. Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast.

Gazprom Deputy Chairman Alexander Ananenkov met with officials in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Oblast to review plans to enhance the reliability of gas facilities in the region.

Gazprom in 2008 unveiled a comprehensive action plan that called for improvements in its domestic gas transmission network.

The gas monopoly last year said it overhauled 275 miles of gas trunklines, 83 miles of gas laterals and more than 5 miles of compressor station flowlines.

Ananenkov said a reliable supply of gas was a top priority for his company, especially in heavily populated areas like Moscow and St. Petersburg.

"Gazprom primarily faces the challenge of uninterrupted gas supply to consumers," he said in a statement. "The challenge can be met through reliable operation of each and every element of the gas transmission system."

Prirazlomnaya platform to be registered in Nenetshttp://www.barentsobserver.com/prirazlomnaya-platform-to-be-registered-in-nenets.4902977-116321.html

2011-03-28 The ice-protected oil platform will be registered in Nenets Autonomous Okrug, license holder Gazprom Neft Shelf says. This will give the region large incomes from property taxes.

General Director of Gazprom’s subsidiary Gazprom Neft Shelf said in a meeting with Governor of Nenets Igor Fyodorov that the platform will be towed to its designated place at the Prirazlomnoye oil field this summer, most probably in the end of June or beginning of July, Nenets Regional Administration's web site reads.

Prirazlomnoye oil field is located in the eastern part of the Pechora Sea about 60 km north of the Nenets Autonomous Okrug.

Gazprom Neft Shelf (former Sevmorneftegaz) is Gazprom’s 100 per cent subsidiary set up in 2002 to develop offshore oil and gas fields. Since 2008 the company has been performing geological exploration in Gazprom’s license areas on the Yamal Peninsula (Severo-Tambeyskoye, Zapadno-Tambeyskoye, Malyginskoye and Tasiyskoye fields, as well as in the Nilivoysky and Seyakhinsky areas) and in Yakutia (Chayanda field), the company’s web site reads.

The Prirazlomnaya platform will be operated by a crew of about 200 men working on two-week shifts. The field holds resources of up to 41 million tons and annual peak production is believed to amount to about six million tons. A total of 36 wells will be drilled on site by year 2019.

The platform has a length and width of 126 meters, oil storage capacity of 136,000 cubic meters and a daily production capacity of 19,000 cubic meters. The topside of the platform is based on the “Hutton” platform, an installation previously operating in the North Sea and acquired by former license holder Sevmorneftegaz in 2002.

Text: Trude Pettersen

Gazprom may get EUR 13 million in Lietuvos dujos dividends for 2010http://www.steelguru.com/russian_news/Gazprom_may_get_EUR_13_million_in_Lietuvos_dujos_dividends_for_2010/197880.html

Tuesday, 29 Mar 2011Interfax reported that the management at Lithuania gas import and transportation company Lietuvos dujos suggests that company shareholders vote at their annual meeting April 20 to pay dividends totaling LTL 120 million out of 2010 profits meaning 37.06% owner OJSC Gazprom could receive LTL 44.4 million or roughly EUR 13 million.

Lietuvos dujos made LTL 159.715 million in profits last year. The recommendation is that dividends be paid at a rate of 25.6 cents per share.

Aside from Gazprom, E.ON Ruhrgas International owns 38.9% of Lietuvos dujos and the Lithuanian government 17.7%. If shareholders take the recommendation the former would receive LTL 46.8 million in dividends and the latter LTL 21.2 million.

(Sourced from Interfax)

Equal access rules for Gazprom gas transport system could come soon - Mr Artemyevhttp://www.steelguru.com/russian_news/Equal_access_rules_for_Gazprom_gas_transport_system_could_come_soon_-_Mr_Artemyev/197878.html

Tuesday, 29 Mar 2011Interfax citing Mr Igor Artemyev head of Russia Federal Antimonopoly Service as saying that rules governing equal access to OJSC Gazprom gas-transportation system may be forthcoming in the near future, as the relevant document is now undergoing inter-departmental coordination.

Mr Artemyev said when asked when a draft resolution on those rules might be considered that "In two or three weeks there will be key meetings at the White House and final decisions will be made on a report by the prime minister. The prime minister, as you know, ordered its preparation and submission for confirmation. That means these rules should appear in the nearest future."

This past February Prime Minister Mr Vladimir Putin instructed Gazprom to work out means for equal access to its gas-transport system for all independent producers. He said at a meeting devoted to how the country fuel and energy industry did last year that this is necessary for securing long term contracts with gas-suppliers for power-industry facilities put into capacity agreements.

Mr Putin said in the context of their mandatory investment programs, power companies will invest significant money in construction and should be confident about receiving the volume of gas they need, which could be effected with long-term deals.

(Sourced from Interfax)