The deal of Russia’s Severstal JSC on the purchase of the US coal company PBS Coals Corporation for $1,3 billion is in its final stage. It is the fourth asset already purchased by the Russian metallurgical company in the USA this year. In April, the separate Severstal International division was established to manage Severstal’s foreign steel making assets. Its head, Gregory Mason, said that the company had occupied already the 4th place at the steel market of the USA, and it wasn’t interested in China’s assets, but studied deals in Europe, India and the CIS.

The world financial crisis resulted in the first sale at Russia’s pooled investment market. The owners of AntantaPioglobal Group that had sustained losses on the equity investments in small issuers sold its asset management business. The former CEO of Aton Investment Company Ivan Tyryshkin is the buyer of Russia’s eldest managing company Pioglobal Asset Management. He intends to establish the new financial holding under Pioglobal brand.

Russia’s Basic Element Company owned by Oleg Deripaska is holding talks with RusHydro JSC about the construction of the HPP cascade in the Sochi city. Other investors, as well as foreign ones, may take part in the project. They should share the project’s risks, since the ecologists are against the construction, and the HPP’s electric energy may be in low demand after the Olympics ends.

Gazprom Neft will both buy out 51% in Serbia’s NIS oil monopoly at the state, and 20% of stocks at the minority stockholders – individuals. The assessment of Deloitte & Touche that estimated NIS (Naftna Industrija Srbije) at €2,2 billion should become the basis to determine the price of the agreement. Thus, Gazprom Neft has to pay €428 million more for the deal without getting the additional rights

Domina Hotels Group (DHG) launches the project on the construction of three- and four-star hotel chain for 1 000 rooms estimated at €150 million in Russia. Unlike other western operators, such as Rezidor SAS, Marriott, Hilton, the Italian company will construct hotels independently instead of taking control over them. This strategy will assist DHG in catching up the rivals: the opening of DHG’s hotels will not depend on the financial condition of Russia’ local developers that can suspend the projects because of the expensive loans

Russia’s Rostelecom and Japan’s KDDI launch a new communication system, the Russia-Japan Cable Network, that will lay under the Sea of Japan along the Nakhodka-Naotcu route. According to the calculations of the analysts, the total volume of investments in the project reached $50 million. The construction will be conducted pari passu

Russia’s metallurgical companies are taking much interest in the metal service business, thus, their ambitions are not restricted to Russia only. As it came out on September, 2, the Russian steel company, Mechel, is going to purchase the German trading and metal service company – HBL Holding. In the experts’ opinion, this purchase will enlarge favorably Mechel’s business that already owns several metallurgical enterprises in Romania.

Russia’s Lukoil Overseas, Lukoil’s operator of the international projects, signed the agreement with the French company Gaz de France on the 15%-stake sale in the offshore project D-222 (Yalama) in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea. As it is said in the press release of the Russian company, the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) should approve the deal. At closing of the deal, Lukoil will own the 65%-stake in the project, SOCAR – 20% and Gaz de France – 15%.

The development of Iran’s North Azadegan oil field can become the first foreign project of Russia’s Gazprom Neft. In fact, the Russian company will execute only the service contract, but, under the certain terms, it can book the oil reserves and get the stake in the extraction of 5,5-6,5 million tons of oil annually. Gazprom Neft is ready to develop three more oil fields in Iran under the analogical terms.

According to the results of the August trades at the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE), the price of stocks of one of the largest Russia’s general contractors, the Turkish company Enka, fell by 22%. However, the ISE index fell by 7% only. In Enka explain the severe capitalization drop by the problems of their European customers that can’t finance the projects. The international analysts say that the stocks fell on the background of the war conflict with South Ossetia, and the investors are afraid for the success of Enka’s business in Russia because of Turkey’s membership in NATO.