Actuality January 24, 2008

   Relations of Russia and the Great Britain are spoilt: the latter plans to toughen the rules of stock exchange listing whereas United Company Rusal, one of the world’s largest producers of aluminum, thinks of its IPO replacing for the sum $9 bln from London stock exchange (LSE) to Hong Kong.

   According to one of top-managers of Basic Element Company, Oleg Deripaska’s holding company, which owns 66 % of Rusal stocks, there is "95 % probability" that the company will place the stocks in Hong Kong instead of London.

   The manager told, that the Hong Kong investors "are more avid of" Russian stocks than London ones. As he said, toughening of norms of stock exchange listing on the LSE can become additional argument for Rusal in favor of business moving to the East.

   He added, that business becomes complicated diplomatic enmity which storms between Russia and the Great Britain from the moment of Alexander Litvinenko’s murder in 2006.

   Last summer the temperature in political relations between Russia and the Great Britain went down to record low level since times of Cold War – after London demanded extradition of Andrey Lugovoj suspected of Alexander Litvinenko poisoning by polonium. The conflict got continuation: Moscow made the British Council to close down its regional branches.

   However, till now deterioration of bilateral relations didn’t affect business realtions of Russia and the Great Britain which prosper, even despite concerns that the conflict can lead to toughening of visa system for the businessmen travelling from one country to another. Deripaska had to wait for visa for two months before the last visit to London.

Some experts consider that going of Rusal to Hong Kong can be connected with other problems which this company faced.

   Rusal, which in 2007 postponed IPO because of concern that soon decrease in business activity would happen on the world markets, became the object of prosecution by Michael Chernyj, the founder of the Russian aluminum industry. The company did not give the exact term of initial offering, only having declared, that it would happen within next three years.

   Michael Chernyj filed a suit to London Superior Court, having demanded 20 % stocks of the company, as he confirms the holding is obliged to return to him the parity relationship in the aluminum industry within the limits discussed with Deripaska.

   Deripaska, the second in the list of the richest people of Russia, denies any partner communications with Chernyj that supposedly took place in the past. According to the representative of Deripaska ‘he doesn’t owe Chernyj any money, and Chernyj does not own Rusal stocks and has no rights to a share in profit of this company".