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February 24, 2010
Putin Questions Dealings of Russian Oligarchs
The New York Times
by Andrew E. Kramer
The business dealings of four of the super-wealthy Russians known as oligarchs slipped into dangerous territory Wednesday when they were upbraided by Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin in a televised speech.
Presiding over a meeting on the electricity industry, Mr. Putin said the executives had undertaken to invest in power plants some years back but were now trying to renege on the obligations, citing diminished demand for electricity because of the financial crisis.
...Mr. Putin had sharp words for Mr. Prokhorov, one of Russia’s richest men whose business interests extend outside of the country as well.
A basketball enthusiast, Mr. Prokhorov agreed last fall to buy a controlling stake in the New Jersey Nets from the developer Bruce C. Ratner, and move them to a planned new stadium at Mr. Ratner’s Atlantic Yards site in Brooklyn.
...At issue are investments by the oligarchs in electrical generating companies. Under the terms of the privatization, they were to invest in building power plants or refurbishing existing sites with more fuel efficient turbines, Mr. Putin said. The men could be fined if they fail to invest.
Then, in a comment ominous for its echoes of the arrest and imprisonment of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, once Russia’s richest man as owner of the now bankrupt Yukos oil company, Mr. Putin said causes may arise to involve the prosecutors general in this dispute.
“There is a possibility,” Mr. Putin said, “especially if we are talking about technical safety” at the power plant sites.
NoLandGrab: In Russia, Community Benefits Agreements are very enforceable.
Posted by eric at February 24, 2010 6:32 PM