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Russian Power Organizations Expand Through Agreements with European Companies

http://www.pump-zone.com/global-news/50-global-news/811-russian-power-organizations-expand-through-agreements-with-european-companies.html

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)

Russia is continuing to expand beyond its own energy boundaries through agreements with European companies. In a recent move, the Spanish firm Iberdrola SA (Bilbao) signed an agreement with the Russian organization Inter RAO UES (Moscow) to jointly investigate opportunities for expansion in the power sectors of the Russian Federation, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the European Union and Latin America. At the same time, the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom (Moscow) and Siemens AG (Munich, Germany) have signed a memorandum of understanding to set up a joint venture entity in the nuclear-energy sector.

The joint venture between Inter RAO and Iberdrola is aimed at increasing the market share for both of the firms and helps establish part of the broad agreement for energy cooperation signed between Russia and Spain during the recent state visit of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to Spain. Inter RAO was founded in May 1997 primarily to consolidate electricity generation and sales in markets outside Russia. The organization is the largest importer and exporter of electricity in Russia. Rosatom holds a 60 percent equity share in Inter RAO.

Inter RAO plans to increase installed power generation capacity from the present 8,000-MW to 30,000-MW by 2015. The firm owns major assets in Finland, Armenia, Georgia and Kazakhstan. Iberdrola is Spain's largest energy company and, as the world's leader in wind power, is one of the largest electricity companies in the world. Iberdrola has an installed capacity of 43,300-MW and operates in more than 40 countries in Europe, Latin America and North America. Under the agreement, the two companies will investigate opportunities available in power generation as well as distribution and marketing in the targeted regions.

According to the memorandum signed by Siemens and Rosatom, the latter will hold a majority stake in the venture. The two firms expect to conclude negotiations on the details of the final agreement by May 2009. Siemens and Rosatom will scout for business opportunities in all aspects of the nuclear-energy sector, ranging from fabrication of nuclear fuel to the decommissioning of older nuclear power plants. The two firms will specifically focus on developing the existing Russian water-cooled, water-moderated energy reactor. Siemens, the largest engineering company in Europe, and Rosatom, the Russian equivalent to the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, have previously worked together on two non-nuclear power projects in Slovakia and a nuclear power station in Bulgaria.

Russia has long looked for opportunities to penetrate the global non-military nuclear-energy market. With industry forecasts estimating that by 2030 there will be nearly 400 additional nuclear sites worldwide, Rosatom hopes that the partnership with Siemens will enable it to become a major player in the global nuclear sector. At the same time, Siemens views the agreement as an opportunity to expand the company's area of operations and work with an experienced partner in the nuclear sector.

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OGK-6 posts plunge in annual net profit

http://www.rbcnews.com/free/20090310103715.shtml

      RBC, 10.03.2009, Rostov-on-Don 10:37:15.The net profit of OGK-6 under RAS shrank 57 percent to RUB 804.954m (approx. USD 22.52m) in 2008, the Russian power generation company indicated in its financial statement today. The company's net profit stood at RUB 311.204m (approx. USD 8.71m) in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Standard, Troika to Buy Troubled Assets

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/600/42/375169.htm
10 March 2009

Troika Dialog, Moscow's oldest investment bank, is seeking to acquire "troubled" Russian assets together with Standard Bank Group, Troika founder and chairman Ruben Vardanyan said in an interview Friday.

Standard Bank, Africa's largest lender, agreed to acquire 33 percent of Troika for $200 million in cash plus its Russian unit, subject to regulatory approval in both countries.

"We want to use this momentum to grow or buy banks in a troubled situation," said Vardanyan, who now owns about 40 percent of Troika. Troika and Standard will "explore new business areas and geographies," in particular commercial banking, debt financing and commodity trading, he said.

Russia has attracted just two major foreign investments since August, when war with Georgia prompted capital flight that intensified as the global crisis deepened, Vardanyan said. Troika, the third-largest arranger of ruble debt last year, benefited from both. In December, Troika sold 10 percent of truck maker KamAZ to Daimler for $250 million.

The deal would also expand China's presence in Russia, a key market in its drive for commodities, via Industrial and Commercial Bank of China's 20 percent stake in Standard Bank.

ICBC, China's biggest lender, bought a 20 percent stake in Standard in March last year, and the bank has already used the 16 billion rand ($1.52 billion) capital boost to expand into Argentina and Nigeria. The deal gives ICBC, the world's biggest bank by market value, a presence in Russia six months after a report that it may buy medium-sized Rosevrobank for $800 million to $850 million.

The alliance with Standard Bank will boost Troika's capital base to more than $850 million. Two representatives of the African bank will join Troika's six-person board. Standard on Thursday reported net income of 13.93 billion rand ($1.33 billion) for 2008, 2 percent more than the previous year.

"The deal, which is subject to regulatory approvals, will be in line with the business development strategy we have previously outlined for Russia," said Yury Voitsekhovsky, president of Standard Bank Group's Russia unit. In the last few years, the bank "has been constantly looking at further opportunities to expand its presence in the country," he said.

Standard Bank, which received a Russian banking license in 2003, seeks to develop both its retail and investment banking operations, he said.

"This partnership is good news for Troika, especially since management retained control of the business," said Natalya Orlova, chief economist at Alfa Bank. "Nobody knows what the banking sector is going to be like in a few years' time. Both Troika and Standard used this window of opportunity" to start acquiring distressed assets, Orlova said.

Prominvest Gets New CEO
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1009/42/375165.htm

State-run Vneshekonombank, which holds a controlling stake in Prominvestbank, has appointed Viktor Bashkirov as chief executive office of the Ukrainian lender, chairman Vladimir Dmitriyev said, Kommersant-Ukraine said.

VEB plans to increase Prominvestbank's capital and has already provided two tranches of a 7 billion hryvnia ($892 million) loan, the newspaper cited Dmitriyev as saying. The aim is for Prominvestbank to become one of Ukraine's top five lenders by assets, he said, without giving time frame. (Bloomberg)
Sberbank Gets Sibir Shares

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1009/42/375165.htm

Sberbank holds the full 47 percent of Sibir Energy shares owned by Igor Kesayev and Shalva Chigirinsky as collateral for loans, Vedomosti reported, citing two unidentified people familiar with the loan terms.

Kesayev pledged his stake in Sibir to back a loan of almost $649 million, Vedomosti said. The market value of his stake has dropped 67 percent since the loan was offered in October 2007, and annual payments will probably exceed the income from his holding, the newspaper said.
Kesayev doesn't face a margin call or a payment demand on debt because the loan is secured by some of his other businesses, Vedomosti said, citing Robert May, a spokesman for asset manager Mercury Group.(Bloomberg)
Alfa-Bank seeks freeze on car maker GAZ accounts

http://www.interfax.com/3/477624/news.aspx

MOSCOW. March 10 (Interfax) - Alfa-Bank (RTS: ALFB) is trying to

get a court to freeze the GAZ (RTS: GAZA) automobile group's accounts

over debts, the bank told Interfax.

"The Russian Machines group, of which GAZ is part, is not honoring

credit agreements. The bank will defend its interests in court in

connection with this, partly by seeking injunctions on the assets of

these companies, including accounts," the bank said.

Alfa-Bank on March 6 filed a claim with the Moscow Arbitration

Court for 288.9 million rubles against the GAZ Group's truck division.

It had earlier sought to recover 71 million rubles from a GAZ

procurement firm.

Valery Lukin, general director of Russian Machines, described Alfa-

Bank's attempts to freeze the company's accounts as "harsh" in view of

the fact the company was negotiating a restructuring deal for the GAZ

Group's debt with banks. However Lukin did not say what the situation

with the accounts of Russian Machines group members was.