‘We are not going to do any open-air construction while the weather is so enormously cold. The only thing the company can do is interior decoration in rooms where heating is installed or the temperature is at least 15 below,’ the spokesperson for local construction company Atomstroycomplex CJSC Natalia Basmanova reports. ‘We are currently planning to resume open-air operations when it’s 25 below or up,’ Ms Basmanova says. ‘As for the inevitable setbacks, they will be made up for in February when the company is going to have a three-shift operating regime.’

‘The year 2005 set a new price-soaring record in the field of rented real estate in Yekaterinburg. This is especially true for sections of office space and trade centers,’ Member of Ural Chamber of Real Estate Board and Managing Shareholder of BK-Nedvizhimost PLC Pavel Kusnetsov announced at today’s press conference. According to Mr Kusnetsov, most of the renting contracts concerning trade center sectors stated the price as $60 to $100 per square meter monthly, and contracts concerning office space had it as $25 to $35 in old buildings and $30 to $45 in newly constructed customized office

As the Construction Manager of Nash Dom CJSC Andrey Armyaninov said to UrBC representative commenting on Minister of Construction and Communal Services Alexander Karlov’s remark, ‘It’s hard to say whether there really is a lack of skilled workers among Russian citizens as Mr Karlov believes since our company employs contracting agencies. Still, what we do know is that on the whole, the building business really needs more qualified workforce at the moment.’

Despite bitterly cold weather, no breakups are observed in the way Uralmashzavod is operating. ‘Even now all of our mains are properly functioning though we do have to use up more resources, particularly hot water coming from Sverdlovsk Thermoelectric Power Station,’ the company’s spokesperson said to UrBC representative. The cold weather also makes it necessary to put gas infrared radiators in mechanoerecting production and gas heated air handling plants in welding engineering in full operation. ‘The water in the radiators is about 80 to 83 degrees at the moment, and the system is working

On average, dwellings cost $1,054 per square meter in December 2005, reported Ural Chamber of Real Estate Analitical Department The prices vary from $1,230 downtown and $1,138 in the southern district near the bus terminal to $1,108 in the southwest area of Yugo-Zapadniy to $1,119 in the western area of VIZ and $1,183 in Parkoviy district, and to $1,156 in Botanika (to the south of the city), $1,083 in Zarechniy area, $1,107 in Vtuzgorodok (to the east of the city), $1,125 in Shartashskiy Market area, $1,098 in ZHBI area, $1,098 in Pionerskiy District, $1,017 in Siniye Kamni, $977 in Uralmash

Since the arrival of freezing weather, electricity use has gone up by 10%, Ekaterinburgskaya electrosetevaya Kompaniya (Electricity Supplier of Yekaterinburg) JSC reports. ‘There are some local power cuts within 0.4 kilowatt network due to more heaters being used by consumers. Some areas find themselves cut off because of the overloaded networks,’ the company’s spokesperson says. For instance, Rzhevskiy area was cut off at 7 PM yesterday, Shaumyan, Volgogradskaya and Voenniy Flot streets were cut off at 10.35 PM. The company was unable to fix the problem at nighttime, but the emergency team

Sverdlovsk Region Court of Arbitration disclaimed petition submitted by VSMPO-Avisma Corporation on January 17, 2006. The petition contained a request to call off the protective measures employed because of Lamane Trading Corporation (member of Renova Group) lawsuit. These measures included seizure of 73.4% of the company’s shares. Sverdlovsk Region Court of Arbitration is going to consider the identical case of Troika-Dialog on January 19, 2006.

‘I believe construction specialists should be Russian citizens and not immigrants,’ says Real Estate Managing Director of Mayak Corporation PLC Marina Konkova. ‘We should first of all think of young qualified staff, so it is essential that vocational education systems be restored and improved,’ Ms Konkova said. ‘We are experiencing a lack of skilled workers, and, should a student have a position with us, he or she may soon become a team-leader or foreman, which will let us have young professionals within staff in the course of 2 or 3 years. We are also willing to employ immigrants, but they

As the spokesperson for EuroCement Group reports, Nevyanskiy cementnik JSC (part of EuroCement Group) assessed its achievements for 2005: their output comprised 1.09 million tons, which is rather close to the previous year’s level. The plant’s productive capacity comes to 1.1 million tons, and this very amount of cement was produced in 2004.

According to the spokesperson for Wimm-Bill-Dann JSC, the company is not considering buying any dairies in Sverdlovsk Region. ‘We are interested in the region, but we haven’t bought any milk plants so far,’ the spokesperson says. Moreover, the report of company representatives meeting Sverdlovsk Region Governor Eduard Rossel on January 19, 2006 was not confirmed. ‘The meeting might actually take place, but it’s not likely to become much more than a small talk,’ the company’s spokesperson reports.