러시아가 지역 수도 공급 시스템을 관리하는 해외 기업들에 대한 제재가 강화될 것으로 예상된다.

러시아 하원 천연자원위원회(Natural Resources Committee)의 부의장 Ivan Nikitchunk는 상수도 공급 시스템은 해외 기업의 통제를 받지 말아야 할 전략적 시설이라고 언급했다.

그는 러시아 60개 지역에서 연방 및 지역 정부 관계자, 산업 전문가 등 총 450명이 모인 국가 수도 파이프 산업의 기자회견에서 이와 같이 밝혔으며, 시베리아 지역의 Tomsk와 니주니노브고로드(Nizhny Novgorod)의 Arzamas에서 지역 수도 공급 시스템의 관리를 각각 프랑스 회사인 Veolia Voda와 독일계 기업 Remondis에 특혜를 주어 Tomsk 지역에서 해외 투자자들이 기업에게 현재 요금의 5배 이상을 지불하도록 강요한 사례를 들어서 설명했다.

 

Foreign companies should not be allowed to control local water supply systems, a State Duma official said at a meeting in late April of industry experts gathered to discuss the future of the strategic, but crumbling sector.

 
"The water supply system is a strategic facility which should not be under the control of foreign companies," said Ivan Nikitchuk, a Communist party member and deputy head of the Duma's Natural Resources Committee. Nikitchuk made his statement during the press conference of the national water pipe industry congress Thursday, which brought together 450 industry specialists, experts and federal and regional government regulators from 60 Russian regions. 

He cited as negative examples the cities of Tomsk in Siberia and Arzamas in the Nizhny Novgorod region, where concessions to maintain and operate local water supply systems were given to the French firm Veolia Voda and German's Remondis, respectively.

In Tomsk, the foreign investors have forced businesses to pay five times more than the current tariffs, according to media reports. The company said it needed to adjust tariffs to pay for the modernization program and replace outdated equipment.

According to the Russian Association of Water Supply and Waste Water Disposal, about 40 percent of water supply networks in the country have exceeded their lifetime expectancy, while only 1.5 percent is planned to be upgraded. Russia has 70 malfunctions per 100 kilometers of water pipes per year, while Germany has only 25 malfunctions per 100 kilometers of pipes per year.

The quality of water differs greatly from region to region, and only 80 million people out of 140 million have access to quality tap water, according to the industry experts.

 

 
[자료제공 : 한국무역협회(www.kita.net) 2013. 06. 10]