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Russian economic minister expects privatization scope to reach 320 billion rubles this year

The minister said that the state had gained 217 billion rubles worth of profit as a result of privatization campaign last year

MOSCOW, April 29 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Minister of Economic Development Andrei Belousov said on Monday that the scope of privatization could reach 320 billion rubles this year but potentially the figure could rise to 970 billion rubles.

“This year, the appraisal of sales of major assets can amount to about 320 billion rubles,” the minister told the final meeting of the Ministry’s board. He added that major stocks of TGK-5, the Sibir air company, the Mosenergostroj construction company, the Arkhangelsk trawler fleet, the VTB bank, the Alrosa Company, the Modern Commercial Fleet joint-stock society (Sovkomflot), InterRAO and five percent of shares of the Rosneft oil company would be sold into private hands.

"With account taken of additional offers, the scope of privatization could potentially rise to 970 billion rubles. But I would better call it an illustrative appraisal. The market is certainly unlikely to absorb and process almost a trillion rubles worth of assets,” Belousov stressed. The minister said that the state had gained 217 billion rubles worth of profit as a result of privatization campaign last year.

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