MOSCOW, June 3 (Reuters) - Lawmakers from Russia's ruling party have introduced a bill to nationalise three small factories including one controlled by indebted tycoon Oleg Deripaska following protests by unpaid workers.
Hundreds of workers blocked a motorway in northern Russia on Tuesday when anger at unpaid wages at three local factories — including the alumina plant controlled by Deripaska’s Basic Element holding company — boiled over.
Two lawmakers from the ruling United Russia party have introduced the bill, which would allow the state to buy the three factories for 1.5 billion roubles ($49 million), according to a copy of the bill obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.
“The bill is aimed at the nationalisation of ZAO Basel Cement-Pikalyovo, ZAO Pikalyovo Cement and ZAO Metakhim,” according to a note submitted by lawmakers with the bill.
“The property of the three factories passed to the state could be sold to a more effective owner,” it said.
Residents in the town of Pikalyovo, about 270 km (170 miles) southeast of Russia’s second city St Petersburg, called on the authorities to intervene after all three factories in the town halted work.
Trade unions say about half the 23,000 inhabitants of Pikalyovo are living in poverty. [ID:nL2642787]
Deripaska, once ranked as Russia’s richest man, lost over $25 billion last year and is trying to restructure billions of dollars of loans to UC Rusal from Western creditors.
UC Rusal, in which Deripaska is the largest shareholder, is the world’s biggest aluminium producer. (For a menu of stories on the Russian economic crisis, click on [ID:nCRISISRU]) (Writing by Guy Faulconbridge, editing by Tim Pearce)
