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By John Helmer in Moscow
The Evraz Group, Russia’s biggest steelmaker, has announced that it has started construction of a new railroad to serve the group’s iron-ore mine and combine, Sukha Balka at Dniepropetrovsk in the Ukraine.
An official statement by Evraz spokesman Alexei Agureyev in Moscow explains that the new line may take six months to complete, and that the effort and expense have been forced on Evraz, owned by Roman Abramovich and Alexander Abramov, by the refusal of the competing iron-ore mine, Krivoy Rog Iron-Ore Combine (KZhRK), owned by Igor Kolomoisky, to allow Sukha Balka to use the same track. Agureyev had also announced earlier that the rail blockade was forcing Sukha Balka to suspend production. Last year, according to the published data, Sukha Balka produced 1.7 million tonnes of iron-ore, down 38% on the 2008 production level, and contributing to a loss of 55.6 million hryvnia ($6.2 million). Sukha Balka and KZhRK produce iron-ore concentrate of similar quality, and sell into the same markets.
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by Editor - Friday, April 23rd, 2010
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Benchmark – LME aluminium, cash price
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by John Helmer - Thursday, April 22nd, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow
A gas supply agreement signed yesterday by the presidents of Russia and Ukraine dramatically changes the prospects for both oil and gas shipment across and under the Black Sea; extends Russia’s Black Sea Fleet lease of the Sevastopol base by another 25 years; and costs Gazprom nothing.
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by John Helmer - Thursday, April 22nd, 2010
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From your cousin, Pyotr Ilyich
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by John Helmer - Thursday, April 22nd, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow
Uralchem is the latest of Russia’s fertilizer producers and exporters to ask the London stock market to subscribe funds on trust. Between $496 million and $642 million worth of trust, according to the document entitled “Preliminary Prospectus” issued for Uralchem on April 19. The offerors are Renaissance Capital, Morgan Stanley, UBS, and Unicredit, with a hand in broking from Russia’s state savings institution, Sberbank.
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by John Helmer - Wednesday, April 21st, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow
Sergei Generalov, controlling shareholder and chief executive of Far Eastern Shipping Company (Fesco), has issued an investor presentation on last year’s results without audited financial details. The leak appears to be a repeat of last week’s financial advertorial in London by Russian tanker fleet company, Sovcomflot, except that Fesco denies being responsible for the disclosure.
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by John Helmer - Tuesday, April 20th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow
Alrosa has referred to the criminal prosecutors and the Russian courts the investigation of a case of substitution of low-value synthetic stones in a batch of Alrosa rough that was sold to a foreign client. Andrei Polyakov, the company spokesman, told PolishedPrices.com that a case of substitution had been discovered “recently”. He declined to say who is suspected, and how exactly the substitution was pulled off. The evidence will appear in court, Polyakov added, and “it’s up to the law enforcement services to find who is guilty”.
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by John Helmer - Monday, April 19th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow
The oldest form of Chinese wrestling (jǐao dǐ) involved the contestants literally locking horns with the objective of head-butting each other into insensibility. Half a millennium later, the Chinese emperors decided that there was more military value in training their soldiers to knock opponents off their feet.
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by Editor - Monday, April 19th, 2010
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