Last week Prime Minister Putin visited new production sites of Chelyabinsk metal industry. Although he generally liked what he saw, he strongly recommended local metal producers to revise pricing policy. A new Russia-France joint enterprise opened in Kurgan Region. Nature reserve in Sverdlovsk Region caught fire. Find out details in the weekly expert review by FederalPress.
Last week Prime Minister Putin visited new production sites of Chelyabinsk metal industry. Although he generally liked what he saw, he strongly recommended local metal producers to revise pricing policy. A new Russia-France joint enterprise opened in Kurgan Region. Nature reserve in Sverdlovsk Region caught fire. Find out details in the weekly expert review by FederalPress.
Metal prices
Metal industry representatives welcomed Prime Minister of Russia Vladimir Putin in Chelyabinsk last week. Demonstration of new workshops at Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant (ChTPZ) and Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Works was on the agenda of the visit.
Vladimir Putin quite liked the new facilities but expressed dissatisfaction with metal pricing. Local producers sell their products at prices 20-30 percent higher than on the world’s market. Putin recommended following Mechel’s example and reducing prices.
Leading expert of Finam-Management Dmitry Baranov observed the bonds market’s reaction to Putin’s words. “The latest statements of Vladimir Putin have been accepted with greater calm than two years ago”. Stock of metal companies either grew by nearly one percent or reduced by 0.3-0.7 percent in price.
“The market and investors did not use Putin’s words to start any speculative play”, Dmitry Baranov concluded. Metal producers do not expect any extreme measures from the government. They also overcame economic crisis by the end of 2009 when the production premises resumed work at 100% of their capacities. Launching new facilities clearly speaks of the industry’s belief in the stable future and readiness to invest.
Joint projects
New steel shot production plant was officially opened on July 20, 2010 in Kurgan. The ceremony was attended by the governor of Kurgan Region Oleg Bogomolov, deputy PPE in the Ural Federal District Vladimir Sevrikov, and Ambassador of France in Russia Jean De Gliniasty.
This plant is the second investment project in the region involving capital from France.
Governor’s press secretary Dmitry Serov spoke with UralPolit.Ru about the symbolic meaning of this event.
“Kurgan Region becomes competitive among other enterprises participating in the project Ural Industrial – Ural Polar”. Kurgan will produce not only classical metal products, but also new items which are in high demand today.
2010 is the year of France in Russia, and the visit of the Ambassador of France means a lot in this context. What is even more important is the trust French business structures have in the region.
Nature reserve in trouble
Fire in the nature reserve “Denezhkin Kamen” was blazing for over a week. This nature reserve is located in the north of Sverdlovsk Region and is a popular tourist destination due to its pristine nature and unique ecosystems.
The fire occupied only 1.5 percent of the reserve’s territory, but nonetheless it caused quite a scandal. Administration of the reserve did not have proper contract with the fire department and fire extinguishing work started with a delay.
President of Russia administration ecology expert Konstantin Tsybko observed common Russian slovenliness in this situation.
“Administration of the reserve must have a plan of measures in case of fire, and each year, I insist, each year this plan has to be revised and corrected”.
Forest fires take place in the Urals every year. This season the possibility of fires is even higher due to exceedingly hot weather.
City-managers attack
Muravlenko, a town in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District, will be the first town in this region introducing the system of city-managers. Direct people’s elections of mayors will be cancelled, and a city-manager will be selected by a competition commission.
Current mayor of Muravlenko Vasily Bykovsky will become governor’s representative in September, a city-manager will be selected in December this year.
Nikolai Parkhomchuk, Yamal’s organization of labor unions chairman, shared his opinion with FederalPress.
“Representing working people of Yamal, I find it grievous that common people do not participate in these processes. As a result, municipalities will not stand for people’s interests, and that actually contradicts the declared democracy”.