UMMC Holding and Russian Copper Company decided to go for a new joint venture. The two enterprises are planning to put up a new zinc plant with the capacity of 300,000 tons of zinc a year. The plant will probably be located either in Kirovgrad, Sverdlovsk Region, or Troitsk, Chelyabinsk Region. The construction of the plant is expected to build up both companies’ shares of zinc manufacturers’ market considerably.

At the moment, the project is at the design documentation stage. After all the permits and the experts’ assessments have been obtained (supposedly at the end of 2008), the construction process is to begin. By 2011, all the equipment will probably have been assembled and start-up and commissioning will have begun. By 2012, the plant will have already reached its full capacity.

The project has been estimated to require approximately $650m worth of investments, to be supplied by both enterprises in equal proportions. The venture is believed to pay off within about seven years.

The plant is to employ the newest technologies that meet all the international environmental standards. This zinc plant will be fully provided with its own raw materials from the two enterprises and is to create over 1,500 jobs. The personnel will probably be trained at UMMC Holding and Russian Copper Company’s currently operating enterprises as well as in some Ural colleges.