UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 13, 2017. The Ural Bank for Reconstruction & Development (UBRD) keeps making more profit from its commission-based services as its business customer base is expanding, the bank’s press service reports. In the first half of the year, the number of the bank’s business customers went up by as much as 15.6%, which resulted in a 33% increase in the net profit stemming from commission-based services (compared with the first six months of 2016). Calculated in accordance with the International Accounting Standards, the bank’s commission profits came to over RUR 1bn in

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 13, 2017. Studio apartments in Yekaterinburg grew 1.9% less expensive in the third quarter of the year against the second quarter (down to RUR 2,513,300 on average), whereas one-bedroom homes grew 0.3% more expensive (up to RUR 3,451,083), domofond.ru’s research findings indicate. At the same time, the demand for studios rose by 2.7% in the third quarter of the year, while that for one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes dropped by 0.6%, 1.5%, and 0.6%, respectively. As for the market supply, that of studio apartments went up by 1.4%, that of one-bedroom apartments

UrBC, Moscow, October 13, 2017. The average amount of money Ural Federal District-based Russians pay for their grocery shopping rose by 8.9% (up to RUR 467) in September, Romir Holding’s press service reports. Ural Federal District proved Russia’s No.1 in terms of grocery shopping receipt amount growth in September. In Russia on the whole, the average receipt amount went up by 3% in August and then by another 1.2% in September, reaching RUR 524. The average receipt amount rose by 3% on average in all Russian cities with population over 1m people last month (and by 5.2% compared with last

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 12, 2017. EVRAZ Holding’s Nizhniy Tagil Integrated Metallurgical Works (NTMK) completed assembling the primary framework of its new Blast Furnace 7. The furnace is now over eighty meters high. The workers are now busy assembling the technological equipment, EVRAZ Holding Ural’s PR Department states. ‘The furnace shell, the cooling appliances, and tuyere area are all ready, so we are getting the popit and the vertical off-take pipes assembled. The kiln and bottom lining is 66% complete. We also started putting the fuel pipelines in place,’ the Department says. The

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 12, 2017. Sinara Group’s Sinara Transport Machines (STM) took part in the 7th Saint Petersburg International Gas Forum on October 3-6, 2017; the forum is one of the Russian Energy Week’s most prominent highlights. STM presented its gas-engine-fueled locomotives and its gas generator stations at the forum. According to Sinara Group’s press service, STM Holding is already an experienced gas turbine locomotive manufacturer: one such loco (GT1h-002 made at STM Holding’s Lyudinovsky Locomotive Plant) was handed over to Russian Railways as early as 2016. In April,

UrBC, Magnitogorsk, October 12, 2017. The 11th International Rolled Goods Manufacturers’ Congress closes in Magnitogorsk today, Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) Information, PR & Advertising Department reports. The event was coordinated by Rolled Goods Manufacturers’ Union, a public organization, and MMK. The Union’s President Nikolay Gugis said at the opening plenary session that this year’s congress gathered together quite a few participants. ‘We see people getting attracted to Magnitogorsk’s metallurgical facilities; this is a cult location, the metallurgical industry’s true

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 12, 2017. Pervouralsk Duma deputies paid a visit to ChTPZ Group’s Pervouralsk New Pipe Plant (PNTZ) within the framework of Year of the Environment in Russia, the Group’s press service reports. The deputies went to the plant’s Finishing Center, ChTPZ Group’s Training Center, and the filtering facilities for close-cycle water treatment. ‘PNTZ completed a number of large-scale environmental projects this year, all to do with reducing the plant’s environmental impact, improving atmospheric emissions control, urban development, and natural resources restoration. For

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 12, 2017. Sverdlovsk Region’s residents will now be able to see new films and TV series episodes prior to their official release, MegaFon’s press service reports. This is now possible due to MegaFon.TV’s partnership with START, a new Russian-language video service that caters to both TV and online viewers’ needs. Those who subscribe to the new package will be able to see the latest episodes of The Ivanovs-The Ivanovs a week before STS premiere and Besstydniki a week before its NTV release. Also, Gogol: The Beginning is available via the service as well, alongside

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 11, 2017. Ural Airlines offer their customers a new, scheduled flight from Moscow to Kazan and back starting from November 1, 2017, the air carrier’s press service reports. Flight U6 383 to Kazan will be operated every Wednesday, Flight U6 384 to Moscow will be operated on Thursdays. Prices start from 2,100 RUR (one way); the flights will be operated on comfortable A 320 liners (both Economy and Business seats are available). ‘Kazan is Tatarstan’s largest industrial and financial hub, a city with a thousand years’ history where different cultures, religions,

UrBC, Magnitogorsk, October 11, 2017. Russia’s Mining & Metallurgical Trade Union’s Chelyabinsk Region division announced the results of the photo contest (Trade Union: A Look Through The Camera Lens), Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) Information, PR & Advertising Department reports. ‘The contest was coordinated by the trade union’s local division; the idea is to promote the trade union’s values and reinforce its authority, enhance the prestige of blue-collar jobs, and help the mining and metallurgical sector workers reveal their creative potential through professional and

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 11, 2017. Russian Copper Company’s ORMET directed over RUR 3m to reforestation work and planting poplars and pine trees in Orenburg Region, the company press service reports. The reforestation is needed after the geological survey works relating to Luchistoye Deposit. 38,8 hectares of land will get replanted with trees. Reforestation work is crucial to Orenburg Region, as most of the area is covered in steppes. The country’s average forest-land percentage comes to 45%, whereas in Orenburg Region, the figure is only 4.6%. ‘ORMET sees to it that trees get planted in

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 11, 2017. ChTPZ Group is going to supply its large-diameter pipes to OMV, Central Europe’s largest oil company, the Group’s press service reports. OMV placed an order for 850,000 kg of pipes (diameter: 508 mm; layer thickness: 14.2 mm) with a three-layer polyethylene coating and 1,620,000 kg of pipes (layer thickness: 11 mm). The LDPs will be made at the Group’s Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant’s Vysota 239 Department; the pipes will be used for the repairs and construction of OMV’s pipelines in Rumania. This order is unique in that the pipes need to be manufactured

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 11, 2017. TVEL’s Sverdlovsk Region-based assets (Ural Electrochemical Combine and CentroTech) are currently working to set up an industrial cluster in Novorualsk with a focus on machine-building, the company press service reports. Novouralsk Industrial Cluster will comprise around ten Novouralsk enterprises (including Ural Electrochemical Combine, CentroTech, ANK Service, and Atomashkompleks) at the start. The cluster will be responsible for a number of key tasks necessary to ensure Sverdlovsk Region’s machine-building industry’s development and to enable

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 10, 2017. The Ural Bank for Reconstruction & Development is going to coordinate an open-to-all workshop on the basics of stock exchange trading, the bank’s press service reports. The workshop will be held at the UBRD Investment Center at 15 Anton Valek St at 6:30 PM on October 19. The event will be moderated by Pavel Pakhomov, head of Saint Petersburg Stock Exchange Analytics Center and a certified securities trader (Federal Financial Markets Service Series 1.0 certificate). Pakhomov mainly specializes in futures and options, shares, bonds, and the U.S. stock

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 10, 2017. Russian Copper Company’s Karabashmed had two of its three Kumera converters assembled at the plant’s metallurgical department, the company press service reports. Every converter weighs more than 100,000 kg. The assembly jobs were part of the scheduled repairs that took off in late September. The third converter is expected to get installed next year as soon as the older equipment has been shut down. The three modern Kumera converters (capacity: 150,000 kg each) with gas-proof dust caps and the new gas-filtering equipment are all getting installed at the

UrBC, Magnitogorsk, October 10, 2017. Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) is currently hosting the 11th Rolled Goods Makers’ Congress, MMK Information & PR Department reports. Around 250 experts from Russia, the CIS member states, and abroad will take part in the event all in all. ‘The congress will hold through October 11; the event gets organized by the Rolled Goods Makers Union Interregional Organization and Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works. The goal is to look at the rolled goods makers’, pipe manufacturers’, and metal goods producers’ development prospects and discuss

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 10, 2017. Yekaterinburg studio apartments now cost 4.5% less than at the start of the year, dropping in price from RUR 2.67m to RUR 2.55m on average, N1.RU’s report indicates. ‘In some parts of the city, the price decrease was as much as 10%. These locations are Botanika, ZhBI, and Parkovy. Zavokzalny was the only district where prices actually went up by as much as 12.4%, and the price of other apartment types has remained more or less the same since the start of the year, small fluctuations in certain locations notwithstanding,’ the report states. On the yearly

UrBC, Moscow, October 10, 2017. As VIM Avia Airlines are likely to stop operating, next summer’s trips might grow 10% to 20% more expensive, Vedomosti states. According to current market players, the price increase will affect stays in Turkey, Sochi and the Crimea in the South of Russia, Greece, and Cyprus the most. VIM Avia was responsible for quite a few flights to these locations. VIM Avia’s charrtered flight contracts with the national tour operators expire on October 15; still, the airline operated its very last flight as early as October 7, 2017. Director of the Russia’s Tour Operators

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 9, 2017. Russian Copper Company’s Kyshtym Copper Electrolysis Plant (KMEZ) produced over 97,000,000 kg of copper cathodes in January-September 2017, which was 8.6% more than one year previously, Russian Copper Company’s press service reports. The plant also made 6.1% more copper wire than last year (72,784,000 kg) and 2.3% and 30% more silver and gold, respectively. ‘We expect to produce 128,000,000 kg of copper cathodes by the end of the year, which will exceed the figures for our record-setting year 2016 by 5%. The output keeps growing because of increased

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, October 9, 2017. ChTPZ Group’s Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant recently got issued one of INTERGAZCERT certificates, which means the plant’s large-diameter pipes made at Vysota 239 Department meet all the STO Gazprom 2-4.1-713-2013 standards, the company press service reports. The certificate of compliance was given to the company by Gazprom Deputy Chair of the Board Vitaliy Markelov during the 7th Saint Petersburg International Gas Forum. INTERGAZCERT is a voluntary certification system that ensures good quality of pipes supplied to Gazprom throughout the entire pipe