N e w s

The government took the first step towards removal of state monopoly on export of platinum group metals. During the meeting held by the Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov it was decide that in the near future MMC "Norilsk Nickel" would be granted the right independently sell platinum group metals (pgm), export quotes would be removed and the data on mining, deposits and sale of pgm should be made available to the public.

At the moment the state has a total control over pgm export. It is the state that draws the terms and conditions of export quotes to "Norilsk Nickel", Russia's only pgm manufacturer. These export operation are being carried out exclusively through state organization "Almaz JewellerExport", which controls not only "Norilsk Nickel" sales, but also the sales of "GOKRAN" and The Bank of Russia. According to the expert data, 1 ton of palladium is annually being sold from state deposits. The amount of metal contained in state depositary is 2 - 5 tons, although these figures are unofficial. The concrete data on mining, deposits and sales of platinum group metals are being kept secret, and its public reveal is considered as a criminal offence.