Russian company buys Armenian chemical giant

Mediamax news agency
16 Apr 04

YEREVAN

The [Russian] International Volgaburmash Holding company has become
the new owner of the Nairit closed-type joint-stock company, one of
the giants of the Armenian chemical industry that specializes in the
production of synthetic rubber.

The agreement on the purchase of 100 per cent of the enterprise’s
shares was signed between Volgaburmash and Haykap Bank at the Armenian
Central Bank today, Mediamax reports.

Addressing a briefing after the signing of the agreement, Volgaburmash
representative Mikhail Zavertyaev said that the restoration of
Nairit’s positions on the Russian market of synthetic rubber would
become the priority task for the holding. Due to commercial
confidentiality, Zavertyaev refused to disclose the cost of the deal
on the purchase of Nairit’s shares. He said that Volgaburmash had
drafted a project of reconstruction of the enterprise aimed at
resuming the production of butadiene at Nairit. The project is
estimated at 5m dollars. According to Mikhail Zavertyaev, since 2003
Volgaburmash Holding has invested 3.5m dollars in Nairit.

[Passage omitted: minor details]