The debt of regional communal facilities to SverdlovEnergoSbyt, the local supplier, has come to 350,658,000 RUR in the seven months of 2006, that is, it has grown by 68%, reports the spokesperson for the company. The management of SverdlovEnergoSbyt started getting ready for the winter of 2006/2007 as early as at the end of the previous heating season. It held a number of meetings with the heads of most troublesome communal facilities in the summer, signed agreements on the debt-paying schemes, and received letters of guarantee in terms of paying off the debts. Ermak, the communal service of

The debt of regional communal facilities to SverdlovEnergoSbyt, the local supplier, has come to 350,658,000 RUR in the seven months of 2006, that is, it has grown by 68%, reports the spokesperson for the company. The management of SverdlovEnergoSbyt started getting ready for the winter of 2006/2007 as early as at the end of the previous heating season. It held a number of meetings with the heads of most troublesome communal facilities in the summer, signed agreements on the debt-paying schemes, and received letters of guarantee in terms of paying off the debts. Ermak, the communal service of

The first entities to obtain certificates of preparedness for the winter were the ones providing heat to Uralmash and Sortirovka districts of Yekaterinburg, reports the spokesperson for the local subsidiary of TGK-9, the power generating company. A special committee examined the equipment and the extent to which it could actually withstand the possible overloading; they also looked at how prepared the staff were. The committee consisted of the corporate experts and representatives of RAO UES of Russia and RosTechNadzor. Novo-Svedlovskaya power station got a certificate as well. According to

The first entities to obtain certificates of preparedness for the winter were the ones providing heat to Uralmash and Sortirovka districts of Yekaterinburg, reports the spokesperson for the local subsidiary of TGK-9, the power generating company. A special committee examined the equipment and the extent to which it could actually withstand the possible overloading; they also looked at how prepared the staff were. The committee consisted of the corporate experts and representatives of RAO UES of Russia and RosTechNadzor. Novo-Svedlovskaya power station got a certificate as well. According to

Ural Turbine Works (part of Renova Group) is going to put into operation its high-speed blade processing unit and hold the opening ceremony on October 2, 2006. ‘The need for equipment upgrading in the field of power engineering industry will be increasing dramatically in a few years’ time; this new unit will allow us to raise our output,’ says Deputy Head of Sverdlovsk Region Government Vladimir Molchanov. Introducing blade production is the key component of the plant’s five-year strategic development plan. The unit will produce 12,000 turbine blades a year and thus can fully meet the

Ural Turbine Works (part of Renova Group) is going to put into operation its high-speed blade processing unit and hold the opening ceremony on October 2, 2006. ‘The need for equipment upgrading in the field of power engineering industry will be increasing dramatically in a few years’ time; this new unit will allow us to raise our output,’ says Deputy Head of Sverdlovsk Region Government Vladimir Molchanov. Introducing blade production is the key component of the plant’s five-year strategic development plan. The unit will produce 12,000 turbine blades a year and thus can fully meet the

The Court of Chelyabinsk Region announced the bill of particulars regarding former Mayor of Snezhinsk Anatoliy Oplanchuk and his accomplices (four more people) today. According to the spokesperson for the Court, the parties set up a few pleas this morning, including the petition of Sergey Minyaev’s counsel concerning transferring the case back to the public prosecutor due to violations of the law (the accused had not been informed about the former director of Snezhinskiy Fund classed as the victim’s representative before the papers were placed with the court). The judge took some time to

The Court of Chelyabinsk Region announced the bill of particulars regarding former Mayor of Snezhinsk Anatoliy Oplanchuk and his accomplices (four more people) today. According to the spokesperson for the Court, the parties set up a few pleas this morning, including the petition of Sergey Minyaev’s counsel concerning transferring the case back to the public prosecutor due to violations of the law (the accused had not been informed about the former director of Snezhinskiy Fund classed as the victim’s representative before the papers were placed with the court). The judge took some time to

‘The price of the established kilowatt should not exceed $1200; these are the internationally applied standards, and the cost of the station can be calculated by multiplying its capacity by its size. With the projected capacity of 4,000 megawatt, the cost of the station can be estimated at $4.8m,’ Director of South Ural nuclear power plant Vladimir Morozov announced at the press conference. ‘The project received 287m RUR in the 1980s, and the money was used to complete the design, the capital development, and putting up houses in the town of Ozersk. Yet 30% of the investments went astray as

‘The price of the established kilowatt should not exceed $1200; these are the internationally applied standards, and the cost of the station can be calculated by multiplying its capacity by its size. With the projected capacity of 4,000 megawatt, the cost of the station can be estimated at $4.8m,’ Director of South Ural nuclear power plant Vladimir Morozov announced at the press conference. ‘The project received 287m RUR in the 1980s, and the money was used to complete the design, the capital development, and putting up houses in the town of Ozersk. Yet 30% of the investments went astray as

‘Mayak Production Association of Ozersk, Chelyabinsk Region, is the world’s second largest producer of radioactive isotopes nowadays. 48% of the global market belongs to Canadian Nordin International, and a 20-21% share of the market is controlled by Mayak. This means that Russian nuclear power industry is going strong alongside with the leading global powers,’ General Director of the company Vitaliy Sadovnikov announced at the press conference held in Interfax-Ural Information Agency. ‘As for South Ural nuclear power station, even though is has not been contructed yet, it is already a part

‘Mayak Production Association of Ozersk, Chelyabinsk Region, is the world’s second largest producer of radioactive isotopes nowadays. 48% of the global market belongs to Canadian Nordin International, and a 20-21% share of the market is controlled by Mayak. This means that Russian nuclear power industry is going strong alongside with the leading global powers,’ General Director of the company Vitaliy Sadovnikov announced at the press conference held in Interfax-Ural Information Agency. ‘As for South Ural nuclear power station, even though is has not been contructed yet, it is already a part

‘The public prosecution authorities of Yamalo-Nenetskiy Autonomous District are going to set up a plea for the reversal of judgment involving former Chairman of EuroGreen Ilya Gaffner based on the excessive leniency of the sentence,’ Public Prosecutor Nikolai Vetyugov said to UrBC representative. ‘I must admit that the sentence really was too lenient; arrears of wages on a scale like this have grave social consequences,’ Mr Vetyugov said. The Court of Noviy Urengoy sentenced Mr Gaffner to three years on parole with a 12-month probation period; his charge concerned violation of Article 145 of

The French economic legation, headed by the commercial attaché of French Embassy in Russia Christoff Lormel, started operating in Yekaterinburg today. The major objective of the legation is to involve more French enterprises in the economic development of the Mid-Urals, assist the businesses of the two countries in establishing contacts and keep French entrepreneurs in the know of the regional projects. The French Consulate will open in Yekaterinburg on January 1, 2007.

Over forty best employees of Evrazruda (part of Evraz Group) have started attending classes in the colleges located in the Urals and Siberia over the last few days. This is part of the corporate fellowships and grants program. Evrazruda has, for the first time in its history, invested in educating its best workers in the most needed fields. The candidates were selected based on their actual achievements, references from the department and subsidiary directors, and the results of the interviews and tests held by the Personnel Departments. Over thirty people started studying to become experts

The extraordinary general meeting of UralSvyazInform, the local cellular operator, took place in Moscow on September 27, 2006. The agenda contained a point concerning early termination of powers of the Board of Directors. Evgeniy Chechelnitskiy was elected the new Chairman; Anatoliy Ufimkin was elected Deputy Chairman. The Corporate Management Rating Department of Standard & Poor’s canceled the company’s rating in August.

The designers and engineers of Ural Turbine Works will be performing four times better by the middle of 2007. This acceleration of engineering and design will reduce the time needed for production of a turbine by one third, and this, in its turn, is expected to raise the total capacity of the plant. Ural Turbine Works is hoping to achieve this by introducing the new Pro/ENGINEER computer-aided design systems, as has recently been decided by the Board of Directors. ‘Our designers are using four types of software at the moment, which creates communication problems among different departments.

‘We do believe Auchan is going to entice away a number of customers, both retail and wholesale ones (probably in equal proportions), currently loyal to local stores. The introduction of this French chain store is an advantage for the consumers and an extra impetus for the local players to grow more client-friendly,’ the spokesperson for Kupets Ltd. (a popular local chain) Nadezhda Buriko said to UrBC representative. Ms Buriko thinks the market will have to go through re-distribution because of the competition created by the arrival of Auchan.

The first quality certificates for electricity provided by ChelyabEnergo, Chelyabinsk Region energy supplier, were awarded to two main substations at Sportivnaya station belonging to Chelyabinsk electrical networks. According to the company’s spokesperson, the quality audit is based on two criteria, namely, voltage level and frequency. Failing to keep up with these parameters may lead to breakdowns in the operation of home appliances and reduce their lifetime. The certification procedure is carried out by the experts from Vektra Ltd., Moscow-based certifying body. They read the equipment data

‘It’s not easy to determine whether the company has chosen the most suitable moment for the initial public offering as the market opportunities may all have changed in a few months’ and even weeks’ time. Yet Metallurgical Industrial Complex of Magnitogorsk may actually do okay as the investors have a positive view of the company. The main thing is to be able to explain what the Complex is planning to do with the money,’ the expert from FINAM Investment Company Sergey Kharchenko said to UrBC representative. According to Vedomosti newspaper, the Complex is now choosing the banks that will offer