NEWS & EVENTS

Dec 31. Schedule for New Year holidays

Dec 31. In global petroleum market news, oil prices pulled back Tuesday as consumer confidence in the US hit an all-time low in December and home prices dropped sharply, with few signs that the re

Dec 30. Gas prices for Ukraine could equal USD 418 per 1,000 cu m as of January 1, 2009.

Dec 30. Moscow United Power Grid Company (MUPGC) could receive RUB 10 bn in 2009 as state support

Dec 30. Vnesheconombank (VEB) has issued to borrowers loans worth USD 9.1 bn to refinance external debts,

Dec 30. MRSK Holding is to repay RUB 116 bn loans in 2009,

Dec 30. Distribution grid companies intend to sign direct contracts on electricity transmission with consumers and are conducting a respective campaign,

Dec 30. Lenenergo could switch to the new tariff regulation model (RAB) effective February,

Dec 30. The investment program of Federal Grid Company for 2009-2011 should amount to some RUB 600 bn,

Dec 30. Polyus Gold has revised the terms of a potential acquisition of a controlling interest in KazakhGold and now offers 0.423 of its own shares per 1 share in the Kazakh company, according to

Dec 30. In global petroleum market news, oil prices rose above USD 40 on Monday as military activity escalated between Israel and Palestine.

Dec 29. Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller confirmed that the gas giant intends to do its best to prevent disruptions in gas deliveries to Europe

Dec 29. The supervisory board at non-commercial partnership Market Council failed to approve TGK-1's application

Dec 29. Gas prices for Belarus in early 2009 will be higher than in 2008,

Dec 29. Vice PM and Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin expects the budget deficit to reach RUB 1.5-2.5 tn in 2009.

Dec 29. The State Mortgage Lending Agency expects to spend no more than RUB 50 bn on restructuring of distressed mortgage assets which could reach 20% of the aggregate mortgage portfolio in 2009,

Dec 26. Russia’s Agency for Housing Mortgage Lending (AHML) is to purchase bad mortgage loans from banks for RUB 5-7 bn on a monthly basis

Dec 26. Russia’s Agency for Housing Mortgage Lending (AHML) is to purchase bad mortgage loans from banks for RUB 5-7 bn on a monthly basis

Dec 26. The Russian government has posted on its website the list of strategically important enterprises approved by the committee in charge of improving stability of development of the national ec

Dec 26. MTS and retailer Auchan have launched special tariff plan A-Mobile and do not rule out rollout of a MVNO project (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) on the basis of MTS.

Dec 26. NorNickel’s EGM slated for December 26 will be the first since ex-head of the Rostourism travel agent Vladimir Strzhalkovsky was appointed CEO

Dec 25. Ukraine should repay the entire debt for Russian gas, right down to the last ruble, otherwise it could face sanctions from Moscow,

Dec 25. Gazprom will cease to pump gas to Ukraine as of January 1, 2009 unless this country signs a new gas delivery agreement for 2009,

Dec 25. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will hold a joint meeting of the Security Council and the State Council of the Russian Federation in the Kremlin Thursday.

Dec 25. Gazprom and Naftogaz of Ukraine currently have no bilateral agreements on debt restructuring,

Dec 25. Oil volumes to be pumped via Transneft’s trunk pipeline system could remain flat y-o-y in 2009,

Dec 25. The Telecommunications Ministry has proposed beginning to invest resources of the Russian Investment Fund of Information and Communication Technologies before the fund’s scheduled additiona

Dec 25. Russian mining and metallurgical company Mechel will pledge 25% - 1 share in its main asset Chelyabinsk Zinc Plant to secure a USD 85 mn credit line from Gazprombank.

Dec 25. In global petroleum market news, oil prices tumbled Wednesday following a string of economic reports that suggested demand for energy will continue to erode.

Dec 24. The State Duma is to review Wednesday in the third reading amendments to Article 46 and Article 76 of the Federal Law “On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation”

Dec 24. International rating agency Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded the Moscow region’s local currency and currency obligations ratings to B3 from B1.

Dec 24. Gazprom has denied media reports about having reached an agreement on debt restructuring with Naftogaz of Ukraine and permission to the Ukrainian company to pay for gas supplies in later th

Dec 24. Russia’s energy strategy up to 2030 has been framed and is to be submitted to the government in the near future

Dec 24. Big3 mobile operators, including Mobile Telesystems, VimpelCom and MegaFon have submitted applications to the State Frequency Commission for bandwidth assignment to roll out 3G networks in

Dec 24. Gazprom and Naftogaz will continue on Wednesday negotiations in Moscow on Russian gas supplies to Ukraine

Dec 24. Chelyabinsk Zinc Plant projects at least a 33% reduction in output in 2009.

Dec 24. In global petroleum market news, oil prices dipped below USD 38 a barrel Tuesday on more downbeat news from the US housing market and a shrinking gross domestic product that suggests the r

Dec 23. A draft charter of the Forum of Gas Exporting Countries (FGEC) will be discussed Tuesday at the President Hotel (Moscow)

Dec 23. Sberbank generated RUB 200 mn in RAS net profit in November

Dec 23. China’s international currency reserves have fallen for the first time in the last five years below USD 1.9 tn,

Dec 23. The Bank of Russia deems advisable to create a special fund for asset buyout from banks during the financial crisis and views it as an additional capitalization mechanism for lending instit

Dec 23. Sberbank of Russia has adopted a decision to allow citizens to convert foreign currency deposits into ruble-denominated ones effective 2009,

Dec 23. The Moscow Arbitration Court has upheld the legality of a FAS decision which earlier ruled that Moscow Heat Supply Company (MTK) and Moscow United Energy Company (MOEK) violated the antimon

Dec 23. In line with our expectations, oil prices tested the USD 40/bbl mark Monday

Dec 22. The Japanese government intends to raise spending by 6.6% in 2009

Dec 22. Gazprom board chairman Alexey Miller held talks in Uzbekistan on the terms of gas transits

Dec 22. Gazprom is to commence loading tankers to ship liquefied natural gas (LNG)

Dec 22. The Bank of Russia will soften bank reserve standards for all loans.

Dec 22. The agricultural sector will be supplied with loans in full, First Vice PM Victor Zubkov said during avideo conference with the governors of a number of Russian regions.

Dec 22. Cherkizovo Group has refused to supply its products to Seventh Continent’s stores.

Sovkomflot could be technically prepared to go public by 2008, CEO Sergey Frank said.

Russian Railways Company (RRC) is looking to raise a $1 bln syndicated loan in February-March 2008.

TGC-2 shareholders to address the SPO issue on December 5, 2007.

Rosneft intends to spend some Rub 3 bln to carry out the first stage of the Syzran Refinery’s revamping program in 2007-2010.

Magnit is set to open hypermarkets in Solnechnogorsk (Moscow region), as well as in Kingisepp (Leningrad) and Kamyshin (Volgograd region), by the end of 2007.

Gazprom could take French O&G giant Total onboard to tap the Astrakhan gas condensate field.

Rosnedra's commission for premature license revocation issued an order to Ulyanovskneft, a subsidiary of Russneft, to eliminate violations at the Zimnitsky acreage within 3 months.

GAZ Group intends to triple auto component purchases from manufacturers in the State of Michigan (USA) to $1.2 bln by 2010.

Russian President Vladimir Putin thinks it's reasonable to work out a concept for macro regions of Russia and does not rule out that this will change boundaries of federal districts.

It's advisable for Ukraine to form a portion of currency reserves in Russian rubles, since at a certain point in the future Russia could switch to the ruble in export supplies, first vice PM and Finance Minister Nikolay Azarov believes.

UES expect to see the capacity market as part of the wholesale electric power market launched as of January 1, 2008.

UES has not dropped plans to place WGC-6's GDRs on LSE.

UES will have to perform revaluation of MUEGC and MCEGC ahead of their subsequent merger.