YALTA, May 5. /TASS/. The Massandra winery - the biggest wine producer in Crimea, has created new vineyards on a territory of almost 21 hectares, Head of a territorial branch of the presidential property management department Oleg Podolko told journalists on Tuesday. "We have planted grapes on a territory of 21 hectares for the first time over the past twenty years," Podolko said.
In 1991 the Massandra industrial-production complex had a territory of 26,000 hectares; now, its premises occupy 10,000 hectares, including around 4,000 hectares of vineyards. "We are doing everything possible to take back the lost territory illegally alienated since 1991," Podolko said.
The Massandra winery was turned over under control of the presidential property management department around a year ago."The presidential property management department is planning to develop the enterprise, build up its production capacity and carry out its modernization. The enterprise should work to capacity and pay back. The former practice of selling costly wines from wine collections, which date back to the 1940s-1950s, for a miserable pay and then reselling them via the Massandra Wine House for a price thousands times higher has been dropped. A total of 64,000 bottles were sold by means of such illegal deals,"Podolko said.
The state-run enterprise is planning to involve private investors to boost development and production and considers a possibility of public-private partnership. The Massandra managers have been studying concrete proposals, Podolko said, adding that the state would retain the control package.
The Massandra winery was nationalized following a resolution passed by State Council of Crimea on March 26, 2014.