Metallurgical Works of Zlatoust JSC transferred 606,179,000 RUR to various budgets and off-budget funds in 2005, of which retirement payments comprised 104 million, with social welfare tax payments coming to 195 million (220 million if including the payments in January 2006). 35,518,000 RUR were transferred in the first two months of 2006, with the average of 16 million a month. The total of all tax payments came to 606,179,000 RUR in 2005.

‘Sverdlovsk Electricity Networks are thinking of ceasing hot water supplies to 114 blocks of flats on March 28, 2006,’ says the company’s spokesperson. The reason for this is debts of the managing companies whose total debt to the networks came to 240 million RUR. The warnings have already been sent to all the non-payers, including Verkh-Isetskiy, SUERZH, Leninskiy, Radomir and Ural-ST – managing companies from various areas of the city.

Troitsk State District Power Plant is still working on technical reequipment; thus, PROTAR microprocessor sliders are now being reinstalled to provide for the use of САР - АRCON software aimed at improving the quality of dynamic reloczation. The program allows to more precisely determine the tooling coefficients of four PROTAR-111 units assembled at the steam bypass regulator of block № 7. The new tooling is going to more efficiently and automatically keep the temperature coming out of the pot stable and provide for a quicker system response in different settings.

Metallurgical Works of Chelyabinsk and Ural Smithy JSC (part of MEchel JSC) took part in the International exhibition PromStroyIndustriya – Astana 2006. The total number of the participants amounted to 250 companies from 12 countries of the world. The spokesperson for Metallurgical Works of Chelyabinsk reports that Mechel stand exhibited samples of most items the works produces, from fittings to steel samples to packs and rolls of stainless steel, as well as samples of stamped blanks for oil and gas industry and machine building produced by Ural Smithy JSC. The two companies view their

Ural India Limited, joint venture by Ural car factory and Motidjag Agency Ltd. of India, started operating in Haldia today, says the spokesperson for Ural Car Factory. The contract provides for the delivery of 150 cars and car parts worth $4 million. The first seaway shipment comprises 30 car sets of Ural 555717-40 back dumping dump-trucks with 6x6 axle arrangement. Ural Car Factory specialists are providing technical and methodological assistance to their Indian colleagues.

Video International Ural CJSC launched its new product, Business Center, on March 27, 2006. This is a service allowing the advertisers to quickly place a text ad, a static or dynamic image on various TV channels. The information will be aired the next day. ‘We’ve lowered the prices to let the firms on a tight advertising budget or large enterprises use the advantage of the federal channels to spread the news of, say, job vacancies or sales. Besides, the ad will be accompanied by some viewer-handy information such as loan and deposit options, rate of exchange or playbills. We want our clients

Nizhnetagilsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat JSC (NTMK, Metallurgical Industrial Complex of Nizhny Tagil), member of Evraz Group, began the thorough overhaul at one of the company’s major rolling shops. All the soaking pits of the NTMK blooming mill department will be repaired within a year. According to the NTMK PR-department, the company has 6 functioning rolling shops. The bloomer was set into operation in 1947, among the first NTMK rolling shops. Soaking pits form a part of primary equipment of the blooming mill department. They are meant for preparing for the rolling process, through an

‘Due to the increase of kerosene cost at the Koltsovo airport and destination airports, Ural Airlines increases fuel tax starting March 1, 2006. The increase of fuel tax by $5 is scheduled for all of the company’s regular international flights to come into effect on April 1, 2006,’ the Deputy Commercial Sales Manager of Ural Airlines Alexey Sadovsky said to UrBC representative. For domestic flights, the fuel tax rates are to remain the same.

The Board of Directors of Pervouralsky Novotrubny Zavod JSC came up with the decision to hold the annual stockholders’ meeting on April, 21, 2006. The list of people entitled to present in the meeting was compiled according to the roll of those eligible to take part as of March 6, 2006. The agenda contains the confirmation of the company’s annual report, and the company’s annual accounts including the P&L account, as well as the distribution of annual profits and losses among members of the JSC. The stockholders will also elect the members of the company’s Board of Directors and of the

The first edition of Who Is Who in Russian PR Business came out via the editors of Sovetnik magazine, Sovetnik.ru web portal, and Russian Managers Association. The printed version is based on the digital source available at Sovetnik.ru for the last two years; it provides information on both market operators and employees of PR-Departments of various private businesses, public organizations and state bodies. According to the editors, the book is aimed at highlighting the personal aspects of Russian PR business and to build up the knowledge different specialists have of each other. One copy of

Ufaleynickel JSC has been trying to prevent the potential flood damage to its mines in the coming spring. As the company’s spokesperson said to UrBC representative, an extra ditch and dibholes have been dug to divert the flood water and a special unwatering borehole put into operation to lessen the subsoil waters influx. The road-ditches are being cleaned and macadam stocked for road repairs. № 15 unwatering borehole is being reinstalled to operate on the underlying level. Everything is being performed timely, and the human and technical resources are fully prepared to meet the elements.

The Board of Directors of Svechel JSC has scheduled the annual shareholder meeting for April 25, 2006. The points on the agenda include approving of the company’s financial activity in 2005, distribution of profits and some amendments to the company’s Charter. The shareholders will also have to elect the company’s General Director, the Board of Directors, the members of the inspection committee, and the company’s auditor.

‘The state defense industry orders make up about 3% of all the orders we receive; besides, we’ve been cooperating with the companies performing the state orders on commercial basis,’ GD of Ural Mechano-Optical Works Production Association Sergei Maxin announced at today’s press conference. Mr Maxin said the special equipment and civil goods made up 60% and 40% of the works’ produce, respectively.

The Board of Directors of Metallurgical Works of Asha has decided to adopt the Development Program for 2006-2010. The company is planning to raise the steel and production and increase its authorized capital as well as restructure the management. This will require a number of steps to be taken. In 2006, the continuous steel casting line will be installed, alongside with the development of a business plan targeted at renovating the Martin furnaces and assembling the high-voltage lines and an electric furnace. In 2007, the steel casting technology will have been fully adopted and the

‘We haven’t come up with any final decision about allotting the bonded debt yet,’ said the company’s GD Evgeniy Kryuchkov. ‘We have been considering several ways of attracting investments needed for renovating our electricity networks and equipment; some of them are investors’ money, a bank loan, and allotting the bonded debt. We’ve already done the preliminary calculations and we’ll decide what’s best for the business in the nearest future; we might settle for either the bonded debt or extra share issue,’ Mr Kryuchkov said. Chelyabenergo was offered to allot the .5 to 1 billion RUR bonded

Ufaleynickel JSC has renewed the equipment of its КС furnace at the kilning shop. In particular, the company installed a new rotation speed governor of the feed motor responsible for furnace charge delivery. According to the company’s PR-department, the new governors are to provide for a finer calculation of the furnace batch charging depending on the motor speed. Within the next few months, the company’s kilning shop, as well as the other company’s organization departments, will be connected to an automatic production control system. The installed speed governors comply with the system

On March 23, 2006, a group of representatives of Voest-Alpine Industrieanlagenbau,VAI headed by Gunter Holleis, VAI Board of Directors Adviser, leaves Nizhnetagilsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat (NTMK, Metallurgical Industrial Complex of Nizhny Tagil) for Europe. VAI representatives participated in the discussion of NTMK reconstruction plans. According to NTMK PR-department, a number of the company’s main production facilities today are in need of renewal. NTMK is now considering several versions of step-by-step and complex reconstruction and consulting leading European engineering corporations.

On March 22, 2006, the Coordinating Board meeting of Magnitigorsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat JSC (MMK, Metallurgical Industrial Complex of Magnitogorsk) and Obyedinennaya Metallurgicheskaya Kompaniya CJSC was held in Magnitogorsk. The Coordinating Board summed up the cooperation achievements for 2005 and the first quarter of 2006. The parties also exchanged their views on the current and perspective sales opportunities for the Russian and foreign markets of rolled metal and tube production. They also discussed the possinilities of launching new types of steel for pipe production,

Trubodetal JSC, the producer of tube component parts, is to have a general shareholder meeting on April 5, 2006. The points on the agenda include early resignation of GD Lev Nedopasov and electing the new General Director and approving of the company’s Charter.

The tube works of Chelyabinsk shipped 108,200 tonnes of tubes in the two months of 2006, which exceeds the figures for 2005 by 4%. In February, the company shipped 50,700 tonnes of tubes (a decrease of 16% against previous February). The company’s output came to 106,800 tones (a decrease of 4%) in these two months, of which 53,200 tonnes were produced in February (a decrease of 12%), the company’s spokesperson said to UrBC representative.