Investment funds buy stake in Eurasia Drilling

A consortium of investors led by the Russia-China Investment Fund and the China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund will acquire a 16.1 percent stake in Russian oil field services company Eurasia Drilling in a sign of deepening cooperation between the two countries.

The Russia-China Investment Fund is a joint fund established by sovereign wealth funds China Investment Corp of China and Russian Direct Investment Fund of Russia. The China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund, backed by the Export and Import Bank of China, is an important equity investment vehicle set up by China to realize the strategic goals of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The two funds inked the investment deal on Nov 1 during Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's state visit to China. Other participants in the deal include leading investment funds from the Middle East.

"We are happy to reach an agreement with the China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund to expand the network of key partners in China, which will enable us to implement bilateral projects," said Kirill Dmitriev, co-CEO of the Russia-China Investment Fund and CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund.

Dmitriev said the collaboration of the RCIF, RDIF and the China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund will open up additional opportunities for the companies in China and Russia and strengthen the integration processes of the Eurasian Economic Union and the Silk Road Economic Belt.

Lin Gang, CEO of the China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund, said the two sides would jointly enhance practical cooperation between China and Russia and promote the connectivity and implementation of bilateral projects.

The Russia-China Investment Fund also said on Nov 1 that it would invest in United Transport Concession Holding, being established by the RDIF and Russia's Leader Management Co, to finance the construction and operation of roads, railways, urban transportation and public-private partnership projects in Russia.

They will cooperate in three infrastructure projects: the operation of part of the Northern Bypass Odintsovo toll road in Moscow; the design, construction and operation of an alternate route at Kutuzovsky Prospekt in Moscow; and the construction and operation of a light rail transportation grid in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Dmitriev said the Russia-China Investment Fund has invested in 19 projects worth about $1 billion (858 million euros; ￡753 million), and more than 20 projects worth over $2 billion are in the pipeline. The RCIF is paying attention to sectors such as infrastructure, forestry, consumer goods, financial services and information technology.

caixiao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 11/03/2017 page28)