According to the Investigative Committee, Primorye First Deputy Governor, Pavel Popov, abused his powers by authorizing the construction and maintenance of a 3,000,000-ruble ($97,055.97) residential complex in a restricted military zone on Russky Island, off the coast of Vladivostok.
Popov was in charge of development in Primorye between 2003-06 when he gave orders to begin work on the residential project, said Avrora Rimskaya, a senior member of the regional branch of the Investigation Committee. Rimskaya said Popov had admitted to illegally approving the residence.
Charges have not yet been filed against Popov, whose portfolio as deputy governor includes industry, transportation, and natural resources. He is also overseeing arrangements for the APEC summit, which have been affected by the economic slowdown.
Foreign infrastructure firms, too, have shown interest in development projects. Chinese investors have put forth a proposal to build a 5-star hotel in Vladivostok that will be comfortable and safe for the summit participants.
Vladivostok recently celebrated its 149th birthday and was host to the Third Pacific Economic Congress in July.
Russky Island, which houses Navy installations and the border guards, figures prominently in the facelift efforts. An ambitious two-mile bridge, set to be the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world, is being built from Russky Island to Vladivostok.
In his June visit to the Primorsky Krai area, the Plenipotentiary of the RF President in the Far Eastern Federal District, Victor Ishaev, remarked that he was satisfied with the pace of the infrastructure development. He said the government was trying to improve living conditions in the Primorye region, as it would serve as an incentive to stop people from moving away.
Interfax citing Mr Vasily Zubakin acting CEO of RusHydro as saying that Russian hydrogenerating company RusHydro is planning to sign a memorandum on cooperation with Japan’s Mitsui and J-Power on May 11th to 12th as part of a project to build wind plants on Russky Island off Vladivostok.
Power for the summit will be supplied, at least partially, by a 3 bn ruble ($100 mn) 36 MW wind farm to be built by RusHydro in cooperation with Japan’s Mitsui and J-Power on Russkiy Island. The Japanese will finance 50% of the cost.