Search Results for: Russia

Keith Nuthall
THE EUROPEAN Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has drawn up plans to lend up to US$12.25 million to JSC Narzan, a leading Russian mineral water producer, based in Kislovodsk, the Stavropol region. The financing would help Narzan expand bottling capacity, develop new products and satisfy working capital needs, said an EBRD memorandum.…

BY MARK ROWE
RUSSIA’S Urals Mining and Metals Company (UGMK) has bought the nation’s second largest zinc smelter, Elektrotsink. UGMK, which is headed by entrepreneur Iskander Makhmudov, said it intends to invest in production at the zinc smelter factory and produce up to 85,000 metric tons of zinc at Electrotsink this year.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
RESERVE anti-dumping duties against two Romanian producers of certain seamless pipes and tubes of iron or non-alloy steel are to be re-imposed, even though they had last year been declared illegal by the European Court of Justice.

Judges had ruled last January that the European Commission made administrative errors when fixing the level of protection required for European Union (EU) producers from exports made by Petrotub SA and Republica SA.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL and MARK ROWE
THE STANDING Committee for the Food Chain and Animal Health of the European Union (EU) has extended until August 15 the suspension of EU imports of fresh chicken meat and chicken products from Thailand because of the bird flu outbreak.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
SUPPORT has been secured within the European Parliament for a proposed increase in the borrowing ceiling for the European Union’s (EU) nuclear energy arm Euratom, raising it from the current Euro 400 million to 600 million. The approval did not come without strings however, with MEP’s calling for Euratom to be restricted in its spending of this money to projects improving safety, decommissioning plants or establishing storage and disposal facilities for radioactive waste and spent fuel.…

BY MARK ROWE
RUSSIA is lifting export duties on unalloyed aluminium and primary aluminium alloys. The export duty on raw aluminium will amount to 5 per cent, while unalloyed aluminium and primary aluminium alloys will be exported duty free, according to a statement issued by the Russian government’s information department.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is teaming up with Japanese-owned Sumitec International to create a US$45 million facility, providing lease financing for Russian companies expanding or modernising their mining equipment. The scheme will especially focus on Siberia and other far-east regions of Russia, which – said a bank memorandum – “are currently under-serviced by the leasing industry.”…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission is investigating a proposed deal effectively allying the European Union’s (EU) two companies enriching uranium for the nuclear industry. Brussels fears the purchase by France’s Areva of a 50 per cent stake in the Enrichment Technology Company from German-Dutch-British Urenco could cut competition and raise nuclear fuel prices, given enrichment represents about 35 per cent of fuel production costs and seven per cent for nuclear electricity generally.…

BY MARK ROWE
PRODUCTION of vodka and other hard liquors dropped in Russia last year, as the country’s bourgeoning middle class continued to choose more upmarket drinks. Analysts believe the trend may reflect the improvement of the Russian economy and the greater disposable incomes of white-collar workers.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
In what it calls a signal of confidence in the former Soviet Union, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is investing 20 million euros to promote beer, wine and mineral waters in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia.…