Expected resignation fuels speculation

Published: 2/29/2000

It has been confirmed that Andrei Karklin, General Director of Aviakor, has left the company. Siberian Aluminium Group appointed Karklin in April 1999, when it took control of the plant by securing 46% of the outstanding shares in Aviakorprom, which included the Aviakor facility. The official reason for the resignation has not been disclosed, but reports at the beginning of February suggested that Karklin had become frustrated by a failure to realise investment promises, undertaken by Siberian Aluminium at the time of the acquisition. Some reports say that his decision may also have been triggered by a conflict with the Estonian Elk airline, which exacted $3.4m in credit repayments from the company through the courts, despite the fact that this particular problem dates back to 1993. A more likely explanation is a personality clash with the General Director of Siberian Aluminium, Deripaska. Viktor Petrishchev, Deputy Finance Director, has now taken over as General Director, although no further details of the appointment have yet emerged, according to local reports his position will be temporary until another candidate is found. Associated article: www.concise.org. 2nd February 2000

Article ID: 1493