Moscow press review for February 18, 2013
MOSCOW. Feb 18 (Interfax) - The following is a digest of Moscow newspapers published on February 18. Interfax does not accept liability for information in these stories.
POLITICS & ECONOMICS
The Russian government is planning to set up a guarantee fund for pension savings similar to the deposit insurance system in the banking sector, with contributions from private pension funds and the state pension fund depending on the amount of pension assets they manage (Vedomosti, p. 1).
Just two weeks after Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that the chief role in the development of Russia's regions should be played by local authorities, Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said the transfer of additional powers to the regions was a "pointless conversation." Regions do not even have enough resources to cope with their current responsibilities, he said (Kommersant, p. 1).
While the public counts the billions of dollars spent on the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia is launching a new ambitious construction project - infrastructure for the World Cup football championships in 2018. The Sport Ministry's latest cost estimate for the event is 1.39 trillion rubles (Vedomosti, p. 1).
The Russian government is finalizing changes to regulations in order to launch a new model for financing infrastructure projects - Tax Increment Financing. The costs of private investors who invest in infrastructure will be compensated with taxes generated thanks to the new projects (Vedomosti, p. 4).
Russian industrial production slumped 0.8% year-on-year in January, Rosstat reported, shocking analysts, who had expected substantial growth. This is the first decline in industrial production since the global financial crisis (Kommersant, p. 6; Vedomosti, p. 5).
UTILITIES
State controlled power company Inter RAO UES is refusing to sell its 40% stake in Siberian hydropower company Irkutskenergo to state holding company Rosneftegaz on the terms proposed by the government, which wants Inter RAO to spend the proceeds on the construction of a hydropower plant in Kyrgyzstan (Vedomosti, p. 10; Kommersant, p. 11).
BANKING, FINANCE & INSURANCE
The Central Bank of Russia plans to hire professional appraisers in order to verify the reported value of the collateral banks hold on loans. The risks of an incorrect valuation of these assets are huge - current figures show that just the real estate that banks hold as collateral is worth 22 trillion rubles, or a third of Russia's GDP (Kommersant, p. 1).
Russia's Interior Ministry is investigating a new criminal case involving Hermitage Capital, which is suspected of illegally acquiring shares in gas giant Gazprom. Police have asked the Moscow division of HSBC, the founder of the fund, to provide information on Hermitage Capital companies that opened accounts at the bank (Kommersant, p. 4).
RETAIL & CONSUMER MARKET
The home stadium being built for Moscow's Spartak football club is selling its name to Otkritie Financial Corporation, and might change its color scheme to match Otkritie's brand colors. The club will get EUR6 million annually, while Otkritie will get advertising, including at the 2018 World Cup (Kommersant, p. 1).
Interview: Yevgeny Kashper, Chairman of Oasis Beverages (Vedomosti, p. 8).
REAL ESTATE & CONSTRUCTION
Russia's Education and Science Ministry is proposing to require the approval of children's services for the sale of apartments where a minor is registered. Such a rule was in effect until 2004, but the Constitutional Court ruled it ineffective. Realtors warn this will increase corruption and paralyse real estate markets in big cities (Kommersant, p. 1).
TELECOMMUNICATIONS, MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY
The residents of the Skolkovo innovation center outside Moscow, including 16 international corporation, are prepared to invest 30 billion rubles in R&D centers, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said. This is about a third of the money that the Skolkovo Foundation expects to receive from private investors (Vedomosti, p. 10).
Russian legislators are preparing a bill that would require Internet service and hosting providers to disclose the identities of users suspected of a crime (Vedomosti, p. 11).
TRANSPORTATION
The Federal Anti-Monopoly Service suspects that a cartel has been created on Russia's market for marine container shipments. It has launched an investigation of the Russian agents of the biggest players - 13 companies in all, including subsidiaries of the biggest global players such as Maersk. The agents believe the probe could be used by a market player to gain a competitive edge (Kommersant, p. 9).
UCL Rail, Russia's biggest rail freight operator, is selecting banks for an IPO. This will help the company, owned by steel magnate Vladimir Lisin, to refinance its huge debt (Vedomosti, p. 11).
