TOGLIATTI. Sept 19 (Interfax) - JSC TogliattiAzot Board of Directors Chairman Sergei Makhlai denies the alleged negotiations on selling the company, the company reported on Tuesday.

"The TogliattiAzot administration is not holding negotiations on selling the company to Chinese or other foreign partners and does not plan to do so," he said.

Makhlai also denied the acquisition of soccer clubs or Swiss hotels by the company and its executives. "We have refuted these lies many times but our opponents tell them again. Being a socially oriented business, TogliattiAzot is focused on the development of production and social infrastructure, the creation of jobs and the support to sport and cultural projects in the Samara region," he said.

TogliattiAzot has the reputation of a good taxpayer, and the company administration is ready to defend this reputation at court if necessary, he said.

"Our company is a leading taxpayer in the Samara region; we paid over 3 billion rubles to budgets at all levels last year. That was nearly thrice more than in 2010. We value our reputation of a good taxpayer and successfully defend it in court whenever that is necessary," Makhlai said.

He also denied claims that some of the company employees were switched to fixed-term labor contracts.

Claims are being made that TogliattiAzot poisons water with zinc and destroys forests around Togliatti, Makhlai said.

"Frankly, these cynical and ignorant lies aim to intimidate average citizens. They have nothing to do with the real environmental problems," he said.

The TogliattiAzot Board of Directors Chairman equally denied claims of the company