Actuality February 18, 2008

   State Corporation "Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs (Vnesheconombank)", Russian Union of Lumbermen and Lumber Exporters and German company MAN Ferrostaal AG announced about creation of joint investment engineering company Rusles-Engineering for construction timber industry enterprises on a turn-key basis. The newly made company has already one project in the Komi Republic. According to the experts, the similar structure will be in demand, as logging segment requires radical updating of capacities.

   Company MAN Ferrostaal, which enters MAN Group, includes printing subdivision Intergrafica Print & Pack GmbH (IPP) that in 1991 passed into the ownership of transnational trading chain Ferrostaal. Since 1999 MAN Roland represents the company. It carries out acquisition, financing, transportation, installation and commissioning of printing equipment.

   Having announced in the end of January of the current year about memorandum signing for construction of Udorsky pulp and paper mill in the Komi Republic, State Corporation "Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs (Vnesheconombank)", Russian Union of Lumbermen and Lumber Exporters decided to involve foreign experts for this project realization. At Krasnoyarsk economic forum parties signed the agreement with МАN Ferrostaal AG about creation of joint investment engineering company "Rusles-Engineering" for designing and construction on a turn-key basis of timber complexes in pulp-and-paper and woodworking industries, as it is noted in information of Vnesheconombank.

   As the representative of Russian Union of Lumbermen and Lumber Exporters Andrey Fomin explained, the idea of creation of such company was matured long time ago. Andrey Fomin is sure that future company has quite good prospects as construction of several large pulp and paper mills is now planned. He also added that the company already works over one of the projects. It is construction of Udorsky pulp and paper mill in the Komi Republic. Vnesheconombank withhold comments.

   МАN Ferrostaal has the greatest experience of construction of pulp and paper mill among the future partners. As the Chief Executive officer of Timber industry confederation of the northwest of Russia Denis Sokolov told, not so long ago the company finished construction of large pulp and paper mill in Germany. Meanwhile, construction of pulp and paper mill in Komi is not the first project for МАN Ferrostaal in which they try to involve Germans. In 2006 МАN Ferrostaal studied the possibility of construction of Dobryansky pulp and paper mill in Perm Territory, planning to be the supplier of the equipment and со-investor.

   Estimating the prospects of "Rusles-Engineering", analyst of investment company AntantaPioglobal Anna Krylova notes that the company can offer the equipment by lower than competitors’ price, and that will raise its competitiveness. As she said, such structure is in demand in Russian timber industry as the majority of its enterprises require radical updating of capacities.