Severskiy Trubniy Zavod JSC (part of TMK JSC) summed in the first three months of 2006. According to the company’s spokesperson, the works shipped over 146,000 tons of steel tubes, which exceeds the figures for 2005 by 6.2%. The works cast over 170,000 tons of steel (an increase of 2.3%) as well.

The rolling shop for broad-flanged beams of Metallurgical Industrial Complex of Nizhniy Tagil (NTMK JSC) completed the overhaul of its kiln oven. The oven is meant for heating the metal ingots before the rolling; there are three ovens all in all, each being overhauled every 1.5 to 2 years. In March 2006, № 2 kiln oven was given overhaul, which took 18 days and included the replacement of refractory masonry and some hardware. ‘The fact that we hadn’t been able to use one of the kilns for quite a while didn’t prevent us from keeping up with the productivity levels. The overhaul had been

The annual general meeting of shareholders of Nizhneserginskiy metal and metallurgical goods plant was adjourned with the decision to pass the dividends for 2005 proffered by the Board of Directors. They also agreed on the annual report and the accounting documents, including the P& L report and profit distribution. Elections of Members of the Board (Pavel Kurdupov, Alexander Loginivskikh, Vladimir Butenko, Sergey Zakharov, and Sergey Mironov were elected) and of the inspection committee as well as the auditor (Standard Audit Ltd.) also took place. Besides, the stockholders approved of

Chelyabinsk Subsidiary of Russian Federal Property Fund announced the results of auctioneering of a share holding of Optovo-Roznichnoye Snabzhenie Snezhinsk JSC (Snezhinsk wholesale and retail supply). 20,477 shares of Snezhinsk company, or 19.8% of its authorized capital, were put up at the auction. Kompaniya Park-Invest Ltd. bid the highest price of 1.5m RUR for the shareholding.

South-Ural Mortgage Lending Agency summed up its success in the first quarter of 2006. Within the reported period, the Agency allotted 139 purpose mortgage loans worth 64.9m RUR. The loans are to be spent to acquire the dwellings whose construction was invested in by the Agency. In total, 189 dwellings worth 156.7m RUR were sold. The Agency also paid off 153 mortgages worth 80.5m RUR and refinanced 137 mortgages worth 66.4m RUR. The total amount of the Agency’s investments into construction of apartment blocks in Chelyabinsk Region came to 124m RUR. The expected amount of the Agency’s

Chelyabinsk Subsidiary of Russian Federal Property Fund announced auction to sell the pledged and arrested property of Chelyabinsk mechanical works. Put to auction is the manufacturing equipment such as presses and engineering tools. The auction is to take place on May 12, 2006.

On May 12, 2006, Stroyreconstruktsiya CJSC, a building company, is going to have the annual general meeting. The points on the agenda include agreeing on the accounting papers for 2005, electing the Board members and the inspection committee.

Board of Directors of Chelyabinsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat JSC (Metallurgical Industrial Complex of Chelyabinsk, member of Mechel JSC), made the decision to set up a subsidiary association Spetsstal Ltd. and grant it on a lease the existing company’s production of special and alloy steels facilities. This was reported to UrBC representative by PR-department of Chelyabinsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat. Spetsstal Ltd. is to function on the basis of electric furnace steelmaking shop No. 3 and the press shop of Chelyabinsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat. These shops specialize in production of

Yekaterinburgsky Myasokombinat Ltd. (meatpacking factory of Yekaterinburg) started to build up the regional holding of the same name, said Oleg Bykov, the company’s Chairman. According to Mr Bykov, the holding is to integrate the main regional meatpacking industry enterprises, their sources of raw materials, vegetable oil productions and sales networks. The holding will also include grain storage and processing plants. The holding structure formation is to have been completed by the middle of 2007.

Vanadium ore mining and processing enterprise of Kachkanar (part of Evraz Group) has been repairing and replacing the contact-wire line of Yuzhnaya station as well as the rails of № 2 freight track of Yuzhnaya and Drobleniya. Replacement of belt roller and repairs of №№ 1, 3, 15, 17 conveyor belt compressors were performed in the concentrating mill of the crushing shop. Everything was done before the deadline. Some assembling concerning the replacement of separators and of the rod mill will also take place. The equipment repairing specialists are keeping on installing the Test Tower unit

‘A delegation from Grand Duchy of Luxembourg headed by Crown Prince Guillaume arrived in Sverdlovsk Region. The Prince said Luxemburg and Sverdlovsk Region had much in common in terms of metallurgical industry development,’ reports the spokesperson for Sverdlovsk Region Governor. ‘The Minister of Economics and Foreign Commerce of Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Jeannot Krecké observed that the two entities had great cooperation potential.’

S7 Airlines start performing regular Perm to Moscow flights on April 11. The flight 035/036 use Boeing 737-500 and are offered daily. The plane leaves Moscow at 11.55 PM, arrives in Perm at 4.05 AM, leaves it at 6.05 AM and comes back to Moscow at 6.20 AM, the company’s spokesperson reports. Besides, S7 Airlines have signed the code-sharing agreement with Perm Airlines that allows the former to sell seats for three daily flights of the latter.

The trustee in bankruptcy of Yuzhurallesprom Ltd. Sergey Kurbyko put up the company’s assets up to auction. To be sold are the steam-power shop building and the warehouses. The opening bid is 1,237,600 RUR. The minimal addition to each next bid is 10,000 RUR. The auction is to take place on May 16, 2006.

Over the last five years, the amount of investments in the company’s fixed capital has gone down from 449m RUR in 2001 to 26m in 2005, reports Sverdlovskstat, the statistical agency. Over 84% of equipment is over 20 years old, 24% being between 30 and 40 years old and 27% being over 40 years old.

Kalina Concern JSC held the annual stockholders meeting. The stockholders approved the company’s annual report, balance sheet, profit and loss accounts for 2005, and the audit report. The meeting also approved of the declaration of equity dividends for the second half of the year 2005 (12.30 RUR per equity). The dividends are to be paid within 30 days of their declaration at the meeting. The meeting elected the company’s Board of Directors consisting of Mikhail Vasilyev, Head of NCH Advisors, Inc. representative office in St. Petersburg, Nikolai Geller, Development Director of Kalina Concern

Board of Directors of Uralsky Zavod Asbestovykh Tekhnicheskikh Izdeliy JSC came up with the decision to hold stockholders meeting on May 25, 2006. The agenda includes confirmation of the company’s annual report, accounting statements, including the company’s P & L account for 2005, and declaration of dividends. The meeting is to elect Board of Directors, inspection committee, and the auditor of association. The meeting will also file amendments to the articles of the company, the Board of Directors provision, the General Director of Uralsky Zavod Asbestovykh Tekhnicheskikh Izdeliy JSC

Svyaznoy, a mobile phone chain, has set up 98 outlets in the Urals, of which 22 have been set up in Yekaterinburg, by April 1, 2006. GSM sales records in the Urals grew 3.6 times bigger than a year earlier; the corresponding figure for Yekaterinburg is twice that of last year. ‘The increase in sales is largely due to the chain intensive regional development (we only had outlets in 7 Russian cities in 2005, now we’re present in 18 cities) plus the active marketing strategies,’ the company’s spokesperson says. It has been reported that SonyEricsson K300i, SonyEricsson K750i, Siemens A70,

The general meeting on April 7 was adjourned with bank shareholders deciding not to distribute profits for 2005 coming from equities. Profits will, however, be distributed where preference shares are concerned, and the interest rate is to come to 25% of the Bank of Russia’s official discount rate, namely, .3 RUR per share. The total amount of payments is to come to 240,000 RUR.

Rosprirodnadzor Administration carried out a surprise inspection of Reftinskaya battery farm following the enquiry of local environmental authority. According to Administration spokesperson, the investigation revealed that the company had put up some buildings in the water protection zone of Reftinskiy reservoir without any consent of the respective bodies. Thus, Rosprirodnadzor Administration charged the company with Clause 8.4 (Part 1) of Administrative Infraction Code and imposed the fine of 50,000 RUR. The violation has to be somehow mended as well.

‘Ural Airlines are wrapping up the charter flights from Roshino Airport of Tyumen. They have only applied for flights until mid-May and were not planning to do them in summer,’ said General Director of Roshino Airport JSC Vladimir Polyakov. ‘The airport is being used by other carriers, for example, Utair and KagalymAvia perform charter flights to Turkey, and these flights are fully filled,’ Mr Polyakov said.