Trubnaya Metallurgicheskaya Kompaniya JSC (Tube casting Metallurgical Company) summed up its production success for the year 2005. According to the company’s spokesperson, the total shipping output of its pipes and tubes came up to 2.855 Мton in 2005, which is 14% more than in 2004. The company also cast 1.95 Mton of steel last year, which is 5% more than in 2004. 246,000 tons of different pipes and tubes were shipped to consumers in December 2005 (17% more than one year before), with 167,000 tons of steel (3.8% growth) produced over the same period, this including 35,500 tons of ingot blanks

According to the decision of Sverdlovsk Region Government, over the half (51%) of the shares of the assessed capital belonging to Sverdlovskiy Kombinat Khleboproductov JSC, local bread maker, is now going to be managed by the regional Food Market Development Agency Public Unitary Enterprise. This agency also manages another seven bits of share holding belonging to other grain-producers and bread makers.

Sukholozhskiy Ogneuporniy Zavod JSC (Refractory goods plant) summed up its production success for the year 2005. According to the company’s spokesperson, the increase in fiber insulation materials output came up to 1.5% (compared to 2004), with the corresponding figures for unshaped refractions being 32%. There appears to be a decrease of 10.3% in the molded refractions output due to a greater demand for unshaped refractions and fiber insulation materials and the more advanced technological strategies used in their production. The company also experienced the output increase of 29% in current

According to the spokesperson of Sverdlovsknefteproduct JSC, the official dealer of Sibneft JSC (Siberian supplier) in Sverdlovsk Region, the company managed to keep the mineral oil prices at their filling stations stable throughout the year 2005. ‘We believe this is due to a moratorium declared by some oil companies,’ the spokesperson reports. Retail petrol prices have also remained almost the same since September 19 when a number of major Russian oil companies such as LUKOIL, TNK-BP, Rosneft, Tatneft and Surgutneftgaz decided not to let the prices at the filling stations go up, regardless

Rosnedra, the Federal District Subsoil Resources Agency, announced an auction on January 31, 2006. Bids are to be made by those willing to do a geological research and deal in gold mining on Khioninskiy patch located in the town of Kushva. The auction was postponed from December 22. 2005 due to the failure of the applicants to place a deposit with their applications. As the spokesperson for Uralnedra, Ural Federal District Subsoil Resources Agency, said to the agency’s representative, four applications were regarded as valid but the applicants didn’t place the required deposits. Consequently,

‘We are hoping to increase the company’s authorized capital to 200 million RUR, Director of Sverdlovsk Mortgage Lending Agency plc Alexander Komarov announced at the press conference. ‘This is a settled and undoubtedly promising idea; reaching the point of 200 million RUR (as opposed to current 100 million) is significant in itself, yet it is also part of a whole strategy which includes enlarging the capital to the point of one billion RUR by 2010; all this will be carried within the framework of Sverdlovsk Region Comfortable and Accessible Housing program,’ Mr Komarov said.

On average, electricity tariffs will go up by 46% in 2006 without any dramatic rocketing that would be keenly felt by end-users, the spokesperson for Sverdlovenergo plc, local electricity supplier, says. Give or take a few rubles, the company’s services are going to cost 329.66 RUR per megawatt-hour in 2006, which is 46% more than this year’s tariff (226.16 RUR per megawatt-hour). The main cause of the tariff growth is having to pay Federal United Power System plc (FSKEES) for transmitting electric power via united national network with tension over 110 kilowatt. The share of FSKEES plc is

As General Economist of Promavtomatika Works plc Tatiana Zhukova reports, the plant experienced an increase of 12.4% in goods output and an increase of 13% in shipments in 2005. The company’s profits exceed last year’s figures by 80%, its monthly efficiency by 14.3%, the payfund and the average wages by 13.6% and 15.5%, respectively.’ ‘The company’s output has been growing steadily throughout the year,’ Ms Zhukova said.

‘A year ago, retail trade turnover in Yekaterinburg was 108.5 billion RUR, with a dramatic increase in 2005 leading to 152 billion,’ Mayor Arkadiy Chernetskiy said at the press conference.

According to Rais Kashapov, Sales Manager of Gornospasatelnoye oborudovanie Works (Mining Rescue Equipment Works) plc, the company’s output has gone up by 20% throughout 2005, and so did mining equipment output. Compared to last year’s output, 30% more of respiratory devices were produced in 2005. The plant also certificated one new product, namely, gas squeezing compressor. ‘Our output has experienced a steady growth throughout 2005,’ Mr Kashapov commented.

‘Yekaterinburg had a great influx of investments in 2005: we’ve gone from 20.9 billion RUR of local stock investments in 2004 to 27.9 billion in the end of 2005,’ the Mayor announced at the press conference.

A new entertainment area has recently been introduced on Park House Trade Center premises; this Kinoplex is property of Investkinoproekt Business Company. At the moment, recreation area and some of the cinema halls are already awaiting the visitors, though the latter remark that Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, December’s hit, is absent from the repertoire, and prices are known to be higher then elsewhere. In retrospect, at the opening ceremony in Park House Trade Center on August 21, 2005 Investkinoproekt Business Company representatives claimed Kinoplex would be fully functioning by

‘Construction output has been on the increase in Yekaterinburg lately,’ Mayor Arkadiy Chernetskiy said at the press conference. ‘600,000 square meters of dwellings were built in 2005, which gives us a 20% annual increase in dwelling construction.’ ‘We also erected a number of nonresidential buildings with a total area of 534,000 square meters, Limpopo water park, Park House Trade Center, Hermes Plaza, Park Inn Hotel, Vis-à-vis Hotel and a new terminal in Koltsovo airport being our most significant achievements,’ the Mayor said.

An extraordinary general meeting of Nizhnetagilskiy Metallurgicheskiy Kombinat (Metallurgical Integrated Works of Nizhniy Tagil) plc shareholders on December 16, 2005 was adjourned with a decision to reduce the number of Board members from 11 to 9 and fix these changes in the Board of Directors Provision. The new Board members are: Alexander Abramov, Tatiana Alova, Viktor Akimov, Alexei Kushnarev, Pavel Tatianin, Maxim Rusakov, Valeriy Khoroshkovskiy, Alexander Frolov, Georgiy Lordkipanidse. The shareholders also decided to announce the dividend of 2.14 RUR per floated registered equity share

‘We are hoping to place our stock onto Russian equity market in 2006,’ Mr Rodin said at yesterday’s press-conference. According to Mr Rodin, a united stock of Sverdlovsk and Perm regional branches of TGK-9 will be issued in April 2006. Komi regional branch is to undergo similar operations later on. ‘We are planning to enter the international equity market as well. Supposedly, this will happen in 2007,’ Mr Rodin announced. ‘Perm is the most complicated region for the company’s business at the moment, and it is there that our main investments are directed’ Mr Rodin indicated. ‘We have already

Uralvagonzavod (Ural Carriage Engineering Works) Federal State Unitary Enterprise based in Nizhniy Tagil is looking to employ Russia’s best engineering design solutions to enhance consumer-attractive features of the company’s produce. The plant has announced a contest for the best-looking machine design. According to their spokesperson, the idea behind the project is to make the plant’s road-building machines, street pneumo-cleaners, excavators, and RTM-160 tractors distinctly recognizable. One of the contest conditions is to ensure extensive use of the company’s premises, equipment and

‘A new player in the field is potentially an advantageous factor,’ Deputy Real Estate Manager of Mayak Corporation plc Andrey Afanassiev said to the agency’s representative. ‘The major benefit lies in Aston Group (the new competitor) which has a good chance of becoming number one stimulating the other builders to follow suit. It is highly unlikely, however, that we may find ourselves in the midst of a fierce competition since our company has a developed network of clients, most of whom have been working with us for a number of years and are quite happy with the way we work,’ Mr Afanassiev

According to the data provided to the agency by Economic Analysis and Development Department of Sverdlovsk Region Ministry for Industry, Power Engineering and Science, the industrial development of the region in the months of January to November 2005 has experienced a growth in most economic spheres. The commercial productin index has made up 104.3% of last year’s figures for the corresponding period and 104.0% of national index. The total value of home produced shipments and services has reached a point of 488,6 billion RUR over the eleven months of 2005, which exceeds last year’s figures

OMZ-Kran (part of United Machine-Building Works plc) shipped a special 110-ton capacity overhead clip crane for slab transportation to Novolipetskiy metallurgical integrated works (NLMK) plc, with the 65.7 million RUR contract having been signed back in September 2004. The crane had been designed by VNIIPTMASH Research-and-Production Association (OMZ-KRAN’s subsidiary), the frameworks by Chekhov Gidrostal plant; the crane setup will be performed by OMZ-KRAN technicians. The crane is going to be used at NLMK’s slab depository under severe dustiness, high temperature and complicated working

The production of cold and hot rolled stock in Sverdlovsk Region has exceeded last year’s figures by 10.2% over the months of January to November 2005. Production of automobiles, trailers and semitrailers has exceeded last year’s figures by 95.1% over the same time period. Compared to 2004, 31% more electric machines and equipment have been produced so far, with corresponding figures for veneer, plywood and slabs being 12.4% and leather products and footwear exceeding last year’s figures by 40.9%. 16.3% more of other non-metallic goods and 15.5% more of fuel-energy supplies have been produced