UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 20, 2017. EVRAZ Holding directed more than RUR 1bn to environmental initiatives at its metallurgical and coal-mining member enterprises this year, EVRAZ Holding Ural’s Corporate Relations Center reports. The company received Russia’s Ministry for Natural Resources & Environment award for its proactive environmental policy. Three of the holding’s projects were on Russia’s Year of The Environment list. ‘For one, the company launched its upgraded dry coke-quenching unit at Nizhniy Tagil Integrated Metallurgical Works (EVRAZ NTMK) during the recent EcoTech 2017

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 19, 2017. Ural Airlines became partner for the computer-animated feature film Ferdinand produced by the 20th Century Fox Animation and the Blue Sky Studios and supported the film showing around Russia, the air carrier’s press service reports. ‘The new animation film hits the Russian screens around New Year and is a great choice for family viewing. This is an extraordinary story of a pacifist bull from Spain who likes to look at flowers and stretch on a sunny lawn but gets chosen for a bull fight instead,’ the press service says. Ferdinand’s Russian-speaking voice

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 19, 2017. Russian Copper Company took part in EcoTech 2017 International Forum in Moscow on December 12-14, 2017, the company press service reports. The company stand featured its key projects to make up for the environmental damage done to Chelyabinsk Oblast’s industrial towns in the twentieth century. The initiatives to reclaim and rehabilitate the deteriorated lands in Karabash and to refill the used-up Korkinsky Mine were commented on as the breakthrough projects of vital importance to the Southern Urals. Russia’s Ministry for Natural Resources &

UrBC, Magnitogorsk, December 19, 2017. The local Collective Agreement/Protection of Workers’ Social & Labor Rights Contest was held in Chelyabinsk recently, Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) Information, PR & Advertising Department reports. Chelyabinsk Oblast-based enterprises and organizations in both state-funded and non-state-funded sectors competed in the event. Their performance was evaluated against the following criteria: workers’ pay, welfare benefits, employment schemes, personnel development, and social responsibility programs. A number of MMK Group’s member

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 19, 2017. Ural Airlines are now offering tickets for children, young people, and retirees at half-price if they book at the company call center or booking offices. ‘New Year’s is the biggest national family event, so people usually give presents to their nearest and dearest. Ural Airlines are giving a 50% discount on tickets for children, people under 23 years old, and women over 55 and men over 60,’ the air carrier’s press service reports. The offer holds from December 15, 2017 to January 10, 2018 and applies to all domestic flights as well as international ones

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 19, 2017. The overall output of ready metal goods (except for machines and equipment) by Sverdlovsk Oblast-based manufacturers dropped by 9.8% in the course of one year, Sverdlovskstat reports. At the same time, the metal goods output decreased by 39.9% in November 2017 compared with October 2017 and by 54% compared with November 2016. Ready metal goods manufacturers’ turnover amounted to RUR 107.136bn in eleven months of the year, which was 7% less than one year earlier. All in all, Sverdlovsk Oblast-based companies in the processing industry increased their

UrBC, Magnitogorsk, December 18, 2017. Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) received Russia’s Natural Resources & Environment Ministry’s certificate for its proactive environmental policy. The certificate was awarded for the environmental projects MMK completed this year, the company press service reports. The awarding ceremony took place during the Ministry’s Federal Environmental Council meeting in Moscow on December 12. The Proactive Environmental Policy in The Year of The Environment Certificate was given to MMK Director for Job Safety, Industrial Safety & Environment Grigory

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 18, 2017. Sinara Development came up with a special New Year’s offer on homes in new apartment buildings in Volgograd, Sinara Group’s PR Center reports. If you buy before December 31, 2017, you can get a 5% discount on apartments in Romanov and Novy Svet buildings. The offer is valid for customers who are willing to pay 100% of the price upfront and holds for payments made in cash or through mortgage options. Some new home owners will thus be able to spend more on remodeling or furniture, others can reduce the principal amount of their mortgage as well the

UrBC, Chelyabinsk, December 18, 2017. Russian Copper Company won a special prize in the All-Russian Corporate Charity Leaders Contest, the company press service reports. This year’s event was coordinated by the Donors’ Forum Association, PwC, and the newspaper Vedomosti. The final ceremony took place in Moscow on December 13, 2017. Russian Copper Company received a special Vedomosti Prize for Greatest Progress. The award is given to companies with the most considerable achievements in the field of charity work and consistent social policy in a given year. ‘Charity work and proactive social

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 18, 2017. The amount of delayed wages and salaries owed by Sverdlovsk Oblast-based employers to their workers amounted to RUR 17.8m on December 1, 2017, which was 2.9 times more than one year earlier. All in all, four local companies reported their wage arrears issues to Sverdlovskstat. These businesses owed RUR 13.658m to their 963 employees. For one, one of the steel-smelting enterprises in the area owed its 644 workers RUR 9.234 in unpaid wages. Companies dealing in heating power production, driver training, and freight forwarding also failed to pay all of

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 18, 2017. Companies in Sverdlovsk Oblast’s communal housing services and utilities sector made RUR 99.6bn in profits between January and September 2017, Sverdlovskstat reports. RUR 19.7bn (19.8%) stemmed from housing services and RUR 79.9bn (80.2%) stemmed from communal services. 53.2% of money came from housing bills issued to private home owners and contractors. These businesses incurred RUR 97.2% in operation expenses (including RUR 26.8bn relating to housing services and RUR 70.4bn relating to communal services). Private home owners paid 99.8% of this money

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 15, 2017. EVRAZ Holding’s Kachkanar Ore Mining & Processing Enterprise (KGOK) recently made and shipped to customer its 200,000th batch of 1,000 kg of pellets. The batch got delivered to Nizhniy Tagil Integrated Metallurgical Works (NTMK), where it will be used for making pig iron in blast furnaces, EVRAZ Holding Ural’s Corporate Relations Center reports. ’EVRAZ KGOK’s produce fully meets the metallurgical enterprises’ requirements. Thanks to its recent quality improvement programs, the company’s pelletizing plant only makes the best quality pellets that we

UrBC, Chelyabinsk, December 15, 2017. Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) was featured in the WWF Top10 rating of Russia’s environmentally responsible mining and metallurgical companies, MMK press service reports. MMK came 8th in the rating, which is the best result among all Russian ferrous metallurgical enterprises. The rating and the findings of the research it was based on were presented at the UN representation in Russia on December 11, on the eve of the 5th All-Russian Environmental Protection Congress. The rating of Russia’s environmentally responsible mining and metallurgical

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 15, 2017. The Ural Bank for Reconstruction & Development keeps expanding the range of non-banking services it can offer its customers. Together with TaxFree4U LIMITED, the bank recently launched a mobile tax return application for its private customers; the app is useful to get your tax money back on purchases made in Great Britain, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, and Finland. UBRD cardholders can download their TaxFree4U app via AppStore or Google Play. According to the bank’s press service, the tax return option is particularly useful around New Year break,

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 15, 2017. Sinara Group’s Sinara Development, the general contractor for the rebuilding of Yekaterinburg Stadium in time for the World Cup 2018, completed all the construction jobs on the site, the Group’s press service reports. Before the end of the year, the contractor will also finish working on the visual communication appliances and security systems as well as interior design. Yekaterinburg Arena’s navigation system was developed with many factors in mind, including intensity of visitor traffic, security, and the convenience of getting around the site. The

UrBC, Chelyabinsk, December 15, 2017. Russian Copper Company is currently taking part in the International EcoTech 2017 Exhibition; Russia’s Minister for the Environment & Natural Resources Sergey Donskoy and the UN Vice Secretary-General, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme Erik Solheim paid a visit to the company’s stand, their press service reports. Sergey Donskoy presented the company to Erik Solheim as a large Russian mining and metallurgical holding that places great emphasis on environmental safety of its production facilities and environmental

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 14, 2017. MegaFon Ural’s users engage in 150 conversations in their instant messengers every month on average, MegaFon’s press service reports. The number of their WhatsApp, Viber, and Telegram chats has doubled since the start of the year and exceeded 200m conversations. These data were obtained by MegaFon’s analysts from looking into their users’ online activity. Ural users proved quite unusual in that their messenger and social network of choice are Viber and Facebook, respectively (every one in two Urals-based users prefers these services), whereas in the

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, December 14, 2017. Ural Airlines recently introduced another Tel Aviv-Yekaterinburg-Tel Aviv flight. According to the air carrier’s press service, the scheduled flights are operated on Thursdays and Sundays now. Prices start from $147 (one way) and from $319 (round trip), all fees included. ‘Tel Aviv is a famous city in Israel and the favorite place for tourists from all over the world to visit. This bright, original city with a very long history and plenty of landmarks is bound to take your breath away. The old town of Yafo with its antiques shops and flea markets,

UrBC, Chelyabinsk, December 14, 2017. Russian Copper Company’s asset Karabashmed (Karabash, Chelyabinsk Oblast) received Russia’s Ministry for Natural Resources & Environment’s award for a number of successful environmental projects implemented this year. The agreement to work on the projects was signed within the framework of Russia’s Year of The Environment 2017. According to Russian Copper Company’s press service, the awarding ceremony took place at EcoTech 2017 Forum in Moscow on December 12, 2017. This was part of the 5th All-Russian Environmental Protection Congress and the Federal

UrBC, Moscow, December 14, 2017. Russians’ everyday spending kept rising in November (up 2.4% on October 2017), which is actually far above the monthly inflation rate (0.2%). At the same time, people living in the Urals spent 0.8% less money last month than in October, Romir refers to its research findings as indicating. Russians spent 3.7% more money in November compared with the start of the year, which was also 2.5% ahead of the yearly inflation rate. ‘November increase in spending usually has to do with the seasonal shopping for food items and New Year’s gifts. This year is apparently no