A-powered sub Nerpa ready to join Pacific Fleet.

VLADIVOSTOK, December 28 (Itar-Tass) - The nuclear-powered submarine
Nerpa (ringed seal) has successfully completed running trials and is ready
to join Russia's Pacific Fleet.

Over the past weekend, the submarine returned to the pier of the
Vostok (east) shipyard in the city of Bolshoi Kamen (big stone). A
ceremony marking the submarine's handover to the Pacific Fleet is to be
held on Monday, an official at the shipyard management office has told
Itar-Tass.
The Nerpa, Design 971, is a third-generation submarine. Its top speed
is 30 knots, maximum depth of submergence is 600 metres, and sea cruise
endurance is 100 days. The submarine's armament comprises four torpedo
tubes of 533 mm caliber, and four 650-mm torpedo tubes.

.Digital studio complex comes into operation in Primorye.

VLADIVOSTOK, December 28 (Itar-Tass) - A digital studio complex came
into operation at Primorye television on Monday. It was put into operation
by Igor Shchyogolev, Russian Minister of Telecom and Mass Communications.
An official at the Vladivostok state TV and radio broadcasting
company, a branch of the All-Russian VGTRK Company, has told Itar-Tass
that the opening of the new studio is yet another step towards full-scale
digital broadcasting throughout the Primorsky (maritime) Territory.
Primorye broadcast journalists have got new opportunities for prompt
coverage of the life of the region and for preparation of regional
bulletins of the Vesti news programme.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who arrived in Primorye on
Monday for a working tour, is to familiarize himself with the first
results of the implementation of the 2008-2015 Federal purpose-oriented
programme "The Development of Television and Radio Broadcasting in the
Russian Federation".

.Russian ASW ship to lead convoy of merchant ships.

MOSCOW, December 28 (Itar-Tass) - The crew of the large anti-submarine
ship Admiral Chabanenko of Russia's Northern Fleet will celebrate the
advent of the New Year while piloting an international convoy of merchant
ships across the Gulf of Aden, where sea pirates continue to operate.
"The Admiral Chabanenko has been busy forming a regular, the sixth,
convoy in the Gulf of Aden and is to lead the convoy in a westerly
direction at 10:00, Moscow time, on Monday," reports the Maritime
Bulletin--Sovfrakht edition. The convoy is being formed in an area several
miles north of the Yemeni island of Soqotra.
Meanwhile, an officer at the Main Naval Headquarters told Itar-Tass
that on December 31 the ASW ship Admiral Chabanenko would be, most
likely, at a point of anchorage. After accomplishing the mission, the crew
will get an opportunity to prepare for New Year celebration in a
relatively calm atmosphere. By that time the tanker Sergei Osipov will
deliver fresh food from the Yemeni port of Aden for the crew of the ship
Admiral Chabanenko.

.Putin switches on ESPO, the pumping of oil to tanker.

KOZMINO, Primorsky Territory, December 28 (Itar-Tass) - Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin has put the Eastern Siberia--Pacific Ocean (ESPO) oil
pipeline transportation system into operation at a ceremony here on
Monday, giving the go-ahead to the pumping of oil to the first tanker.
The system was activated after a Transneft Company controller reported
the tanker's readiness to receive oil.
Following the start-up of the ESPO system, Putin made the following
entry in the honorary visitors' book: "My congratulations on the start of
work. Happy New Year. Luck"
The ESPO pipeline transportation system is intended to diversify the
supply of Russian oil and open up a new promising market of the
Asia-Pacific Region to this country.
"This is a great event for the sector and the region," the Premier
said. Putin recalled that a decision to build such a pipeline
transportation system had been made on December 31, 2004. "Within five
years we have accomplished everything that we contemplated," he emphasized.
The cost of the first phase of the ESPO has amounted to 360,000
million roubles, and another 60,000 million roubles have been used for the
construction of the port at Kozmino, Putin said.
"This is an important event to Russia. This is a strategic project
that makes it possible to reach out to new markets of the Asia-Pacific
Region. Russia is present there, although insufficiently," the Premier
pointed out.
In so doing he stressed, "We have managed to do all this under
conditions of the world financial downturn, without setbacks". "I
congratulate you. This is an excellent New-Year gift to Russia," Putin
told those present.
He also recalled that from the very outset the implementation of the
project had encountered difficulties, specifically with determining a
direction of the new pipeline: to the North or to the Far East. "We
decided to build it in the direction of the Far East," he said, adding
that this will make it possible to give an impetus to the development of
the region and diversify the deliveries of raw materials.
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