July
  2018
ISSUE
No. 176

  USRCC Business Newsletter
USRCC Activities
USRCC's Booth at the Annual Summer NAPE in Houston  

The annual Summer NAPE in Houston is an expo and networking event that brings together all the players necessary to forge, facilitate and close deals. More intimate than the annual NAPE Summit, this show is a "must attend" event to network with the people and players who have firsthand knowledge of the opportunities and prospects throughout the area. Summer NAPE is where deals happen:  http://napeexpo.com/summer

The Summit will be held at the George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston TX
August 15-16, 2018.

Stop by the USRCC booth #1538!


The U.S.-Russia Chamber of Commerce invites you to attend

The 8th Annual Welcome Reception
Honoring Russian and CIS Delegations to the 
Breakbulk Americas  2018

Please join the U.S.-Russia Chamber of Commerce in welcoming Russian and CIS delegations to the 8th Annual Breakbulk Americas Reception . This annual event draws decision makers in U.S.- Russia trade and investment, including senior representatives from major shipping and logistics companies, leaders in the oil and gas industry, government officials, elected officials and more.

Breakbulk Americas is the largest and most important gathering in North America for companies involved in the shipping of heavy-lift, project cargo and traditional breakbulk cargoes. The conference provides shippers with the opportunity to meet and develop relationships with the leading specialized carriers, forwarders, ports, terminals and packers who have the expertise and resources to handle oversized cargoes with unique handling requirements.





Wednesday, October 3, 2018 * 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM 
Four Seasons Hotel, Whitney Room * 1300 Lamar Street, 
Houston, TX 77010

USRCC Members - $30/Non-Members - $60
Please note: Refunds will not be issued after September the 30th, 2018


For sponsorship opportunities please contact:

The U.S.-Russia Chamber of Commerce
2900 Wilcrest Drive, Suite 133, Houston, TX 77042 
Phone: 713.429.4680 Email : info@usrussiacc.org

USRCC Internship
GET INVOLVED

The USRCC is looking for new team members!

Volunteers
 play a key role and the contributions they make impact the day-to-day functions of the chamber and shape the future of the relationship between Russia and the U.S.

There are many ways you can get involved with the USRCC. Whether you are an experienced leader or a student, there is a place for you. By volunteering you can be at the very centre of our high-profile events held in Houston, Chicago and New York City and interact with influential leaders in the U.S.-Russia trade and investment.
To learn more about the position  click here or contact us directly at info@usrussiacc.org   call 713.429.4680
USRCC Membership
Are you taking advantage of your  USRCC Member Benefits?

Renew your membership or join for the first time today!

For more information  click here 
Interested in learning more about our 2018 events?

To see a full list   click here                                                                                                                     
Members' News
LUKOIL TAKES FID ON THE RAKUSHECHNOYE FIELD

Lukoil.com, July 20, 2018: PJSC "LUKOIL" took the final investment decision on the Rakushechnoye field development project in the Caspian Sea.
The field infrastructure under the taken decision includes a fixed offshore ice-resistant platform, a living quarters platform, a crossover bridge, as well as subsea interfield pipelines and cable lines for the connection with the second fixed offshore ice-resistant platform at the V. Filanovsky field. The commercial production is scheduled to start in 2023. The expected oil production plateau is 1.2 million tonnes per year.
ExxonMobil Leverages IBM Cloud To Help Transform Speedpass+

Marketwatch.com, July 19, 2018: IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced that ExxonMobil, the largest publicly traded international oil and gas company, has been using the IBM Cloud as the foundation for their Speedpass+™app. The mobile app delivers greater levels of personalization, efficiency and security to its customers and enables them to pay for fuel and car washes via their mobile device instead of swiping their credit card.
The Speedpass+ app was designed and developed by IBM iX, one of the world's largest digital agencies and global business design partners, with the goal of blending analytics, design and development to create a new and differentiated experience for ExxonMobil customers.  Read more...
UHD Hosts Annual Houston PREP Day

News.uhd.edu, July 13, 2018: On Thursday, July 12, the University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) hosted its annual Houston Pre-Freshmen Enrichment Program (PREP) Engineering Day presented by the College of Sciences & Technology. Houston PREP is for middle and high school students interested in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Students participated in activities and experiments featuring elements of STEM and enjoyed presentations from sponsors and faculty members. They also showcased some of their engineering, robotics and other projects in the Student Project Competition. The program wraps up on Friday, July 20.   Read more...
The Week in Review
Russia raises crude oil exports from Sakhalin-1 in Q3

Reuters.com, July 16, 2018: Russia plans to boost crude oil exports from the ExxonMobil-led Sakhalin-1 project to between 260,000 to 266,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the third quarter after major oil producers agreed to lift production at the end of June, industry sources said on Monday.
The exports include 10 to 11 cargoes of Sokol crude to be lifted in July and 12 cargoes scheduled to load in August and September, three sources with knowledge of the matter said. Each cargo is 700,000 barrels.   Read more...
Russia's Novatek uses short Arctic route for LNG shipment

Upi.com, July 19, 2018: Russian energy company Novatek said Thursday it shipped its first batch of liquefied natural gas to China using a so-called Northern Sea Route.
The northern passageway is a shipping lane in Russia's economic zone that runs along the Arctic coast to the Bering Strait. Novatek said it shipped its first cargos of LNG from its northern Yamal project to China using the route. The shipment took 19 days, compared to 35 days using a traditional shipping lane. Read more...
Russia's S7 Airlines sees traffic grow 12.6 per cent in June

Rusaviainsider.com, July 19, 2018: S7 Airlines and Globus, the two Russian carriers that make up the S7 Airlines Group, jointly served some 1.535 million passengers in June, a 12.6 per cent improvement over the same month of last year.
S7 Airlines, the larger of the two, which claims to offer 'the widest domestic route network' from its two bases at Novosibirsk's Tolmachevo and Domodedovo in Moscow, was accountable for 1.096 million, thereby exhibiting an average growth rate of 12.4 per cent. "The significant growth on domestic lines in June was generated by football fans using S7 Airlines to travel between the championship host cities. Last month we carried about 100,000 passengers travelling for purposes connected to the World Cup.    Read more...
China to consider expansion of grain supplies from Russia

Tass.com, July 20, 2018: China will consider the possibility of expanding the list of Russian regions allowed to export grain products to the country, Russia's agricultural watchdog, the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance, said in a statement on Friday.
"The issue is about all Russian regions being allowed to supply wheat, soybeans, corn, rice and colza seeds, rather than 1-2 substituent entities as before," the regulator said about the agreement reached during consultations between Russia's Economic Development Ministry and China's Commerce Ministry.  Read more...
Russian automaker intends to increase sales in Uzbekistan by 2.5 times

Azernews.az, July 18, 2018: The Russian automaker UAZ intends to deliver 1,000 cars to Uzbekistan in 2018, which is almost 2.5 times more than in 2017, Podrobno.uz reported.
The Ulyanovsk automobile plant delivered 5,101 cars abroad in 2017, which is 47 percent more than a year earlier. Most of the UAZ cars are sold in the CIS countries, the products are also in demand in some countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, north, south and central America. The company expects to increase sales in foreign markets this year.
However, UAZ is the only car brand from the top 15 of the Russian market, which showed a decline in sales in Russia in 1H2018. This brand has rolled from 12th position to 14th in the ranking of the most popular cars, skipping ahead of Mitsubishi and BMW.  Read more...
Iran, Russia working to establish stock market corridor for investors - CSDI head

Azernews.az, July 19, 2018: The chairman of the Central Securities Depository of Iran (CSDI) said Iran and Russia are working to establish a stock market corridor for investors in the two countries to access each other's capital markets.
Central Securities Depositories of Iran and Russia signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Moscow in April to develop cooperation in a vast range of issues, Hossein Fahimi told Trend.
He added that establishing a stock market corridor for investors in the two countries to access each other's capital markets was among the main issues to be worked upon under this cooperation agreement.  Read more...
Hyundai Glovis to ship Hyundai Motor car parts via Trans-Siberian rail to Russia

Pulsenews.co.kr, July 20, 2018: Hyundai Glovis Co., a logistics unit of South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group, is looking to add the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR) to its delivery route for knockdown parts from Busan in Korea to a Hyundai Motor factory in St. Petersburg, Russia. 
During a discussion on Korea's logistics strategy organized by the Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation on Thursday, Koo Hyung-joon, head of Hyundai Glovis' logistics business, said that the company is building a more stable delivery system with binary options of ocean ships and TSR trains.   Read more...
Russia's economy scores as World Cup fans splash out $1.5bn

Ft.com, July 19, 2018: Russia is already enjoying a World Cup windfall of positive international PR and a surge in national pride after staging a widely praised tournament and seeing its team defy rock-bottom expectations. The event also gave its economy a welcome shot in the arm, the country's top bank said on Thursday. Visiting football fans spent $1.5bn during the one-month tournament, according to state-owned lender Sberbank.  Read more...
Russia plans national road reconstruction project essential to economic growth

RT.com, July 19, 2018: About 9,000 kilometers of highways and roads in Russia will be transferred to federal ownership by 2021 before a major rebuilding project to boost the country's road infrastructure and the national economy.
The trend will continue after 2021 with additional 8,300kms of road becoming the property of the Federal government. Federal highways are usually of much better quality in Russia, and the transfer of ownership will speed up their reconstruction and building, authorities say.  Read more...
Russian Rosatom dominates global nuclear energy market

Realnoevremya.com, July 20, 2018: Russia's nuclear packages are so attractive because Rosatom provides not only actual construction of the power plants and the shipping of nuclear fuel but also financing and day-to-day management of the facilities. Besides, the Russian company offers far greater discounts than its competitors. The constructed power plants will be the first in the countries' history for many of Rosatom's customers.
Nonetheless, Moscow also faces risks such as a heap of nuclear waste, which Rosatom is contractually obliged to take care of in some cases.  Read more...
Business - basis of Russian-Azerbaijani bilateral co-op, minister says

En.trend.az, July 17, 2018: Business is the basis of all Russian-Azerbaijani bilateral cooperation, Russian Minister of Economic Development Maxim Oreshkin said at a meeting of the Russian-Azerbaijani Business Council.
The minister noted that the Russian-Azerbaijani business council can act as a generator of business ideas in the Azerbaijani direction, and a source of proposals for their solution.
The activities of business councils contribute significantly to the increase in trade between the two countries. Over the five months of 2018, it increased by almost 21 percent, compared to the same period in 2017 and exceeded $900,000.   Read more...
Houston - Tyumen Sister Cities
Tyumen University to open ecology monitoring laboratory

Tass.com, July 16, 2018: Students and young scientists at the Tyumen State University will do ecology research at a special laboratory, which the University will organize. This laboratory will be used also for Arctic projects, Director of the University's Institute of the Earth's Studies Vitaly Khoroshavin told TASS.
"We shall have a laboratory, where students would be able to make research, related to analyzing natural environments: mostly soil, water. <...> Students will learn how the equipment works, they will make scientific research - we shall involve students actively to scientific work, where not much is possible without ecological chemical analyses," he said.  Read more...
US-Russia Related News in Russian
Новости недели
«Газпром» сообщил о контрактах для строительства газопровода «Северный поток - 2» 

News.rambler.ru, 20 июля, 2018: "Газпром" заключил контракты на общую сумму 90,8 млрд руб. за строительство на Северо-Западе России газотранспортных мощностей для поставки газа в газопровод «Северный поток - 2». Об этом сообщает РИА «Новости» со ссылкой на материалы компании.
Уточняется, что «Газпром» провел три закупки на выполнение строительно-монтажных работ.
Срок исполнения по трем контрактам - февраль 2021 года. Об этом сообщает Рамблер. Читать далее...
Экспорт газа из России в ЕС может вырасти на 10-15%, считает Новак

Ria.ru, 17 июля, 2018: Поставки российского газа в Европу в ближайшие пять-десять лет могут увеличиться на 10-15%; этот прирост РФ, Украина и ЕС обсуждают как возможный источник для транзита через газотранспортную систему (ГТС) Украины, сообщил журналистам глава Минэнерго РФ Александр Новак.
"На сегодня мы уже понимаем, что в период ближайших пяти-десяти лет объемы поставок европейским потребителям будут еще больше, чем в 2017-2018 годах. Речь может идти о 10-15% дополнительного роста.   Читать далее...
Сотрудничество со «Сколково» даст Тольятти новый импульс развития  

News.rambler.ru, 18 июля, 2018: В частности, в инновационном развитии региона особая роль отведена Тольятти: расположенный в Автограде технопарк «Жигулевская долина» претендует на получение статуса регионального оператора фонда «Сколково».
"От Тольятти я жду опережающего экономического роста. Экономика будущего формируется именно здесь, здесь работает один из самых успешных в России технопарков. Об этом сообщает Рамблер.  Читать далее...
ТУЛЬСКИЕ ДОРОЖНО-СТРОИТЕЛЬНЫЕ ТЕХНОЛОГИИ ПЛАНИРУЕТ ЗАКУПИТЬ ЮЖНАЯ КОРЕЯ

Rusexporter.ru, 19 июля, 2018: Дорожно-строительная технология, разработанная ООО «Малиновский комбинат железобетонных изделий» вызвала интерес у южнокорейских производителей. 
Строительная компания Cheong Jin Co. Engineering & Construction Ltd. подтвердила намерение закупить лицензию на производство линии бетонных водоприемных решеток для малазийского региона: Южной Кореи, Малайзии и Японии. 
Отечественное изделие является альтернативой чугунным решеткам и имеет по сравнению с ними ряд преимуществ. Это и высокие эксплуатационные характеристики (срок службы - до 25 лет), и снижение в 2-2,5 раза затрат на производство и эксплуатацию, повышение уровня безопасности дорожного движения: коэффициент скольжения бетона практически равен аналогичному показателю для асфальтобетонного покрытия.  Читать далее...
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The U.S.-Russia Chamber of Commerce (USRCC)  is  a 501(c)(6) no t for  profit  corporation with its headquarters  in Houston, Texas,  and offices in the Midwest and the Northeast. The USRCC  was established in 2009 to promote  trade and investment  between  the  Russia n Federation  and the U.S. A.  
The information contained in this newsletter is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or other professional advice on any subject matter. USRCC does not accept any responsibility for any loss that may arise from reliance on information contained in this newsletter. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not reflect the opinions or views of the USRCC or its members.  Links within this newsletter lead to other websites, including those operated and maintained by third parties. The linked sites are not part of the USRCC newsletter. USRCC includes these links solely as a convenience to the newsletter subscribers, and the presence of such links does not imply a responsibility for the linked site and its operator. USRCC cannot certify the accuracy of the material provided by the original  source .