The Stavropol Territory Infrastructure

Transport

There is an international airport in Stavropol and in MineralnyVody. The latter can accept airliners of all types. The annual density of passenger traffic estimates at about 400 thousand people. The network of highways connects to ports on the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas, and offers an effective connection with all the populated

The highway length is estimated at 7669 km, from which 97.3% have solid roadway covering. The stable operation of motor and tractor services is ensured by more than 150 motor and tractor factories. The biggest and the most stable motor and tractor factory is the public company "Sovtransavto-Minvody" which includes international transportation.

Railway communication between the Stavropol Territory and other parts of Russia is earned out through the mainline "Kavkazskaia - Tihoretskaia - Rostov-on-Don". The main freight flow goes through the railway mainline "Budionnovsk - Neftekumsk - Kochubei". Its length amounts to 240 km. and it provides direct access to Transcaucasia and the Middle East.

Inside the Stavropol Territory branch lines connect 160 enterprises and 34 stations, 6 of which are railway junctions. The biggest stations are: "Mineralny Vody" - the main marshalling yard of Northern Caucasus; "Staromarievskaia" - the basic marshalling yard of the territory's industry and agriculture; "Nevinnomisk" -provides industrial and processing infrastructures of Nevinnomisk, agricultural enterprises of the Stavropol Territory and Karachayevo-Cherkess Republic.

Customs

is carried on by two customs offices: one in Stavropol and the other in MineralnyVody. For the importers' and exporters' convenience, a network of customs offices in several towns and regions of the Stavropol Territory has been established.

Communications

The leader in the communication services market in the Stavropol Territory is a public company "Electrosvyaz". The company's services list includes long-distance and international telephone communication, local (urban and rural) telephone communication, data communication, wire and air broadcasting, cellular communication.

In 1995-1999 worldwide famous companies "Alcatel", "Lusent Technologies", "Italtel", "LGIC" and "Telenor" invested more than 20 million US dollars into the public company "Electrosvyaz". In the field of high-tech telecommunications within the public company "Electrosvyaz" a transportation system was developed (622 Mb/sec) which became a base for ISDN network digital subscriber lines. It allows connecting a number of terminals such as computer, fax, videophone and others to a digital telephone. Introduction of ISDN helped to establish videophone communication and it has already been arranged between some subscribers in Stavropol.

Market developments in the sphere of pager communication are underway. Already this service is open to the residents of Stavropol and its outskirts, as well as the KMV area and Budennovsk.

During last 2-3 years the cellular radiotelephone communication system has been rapidly developing. Private Company "Stavropolskaia Sotovaia Svyaz" offers cellular communication services of the AMPS-800 MHz standard which provide automatic roaming with more than 100 Russian towns and 86 countries around the world. Private company "StavTeleSot" offers GSM-900 MHz standard communication providing automatic roaming with more than 100 towns all over Russia. In perspective this network will spread onto all towns and regions of the Stavropol Territory. In addition, the private company "Mobilnaia Sotovaia Svyaz Stavropolia" operates within the Stavropol Territory and offers MMT-450 MHz standard services of the federal cellular network system "Sotel". However one of the sectors of cellular communication; within the Stavropol Territory-satellite cellular communication has not yet been developed.

Investment and Financial Infrastructure

The banking system of the region consists of 11 commercial banks with the headquarters in the Stavropol Territory and 22 branches of banks, whose headquarters are outside the region. The major part of the financial procedures are carried out by the Savings Bank of the Russian Federation (with its network of branches in 29 towns and regions) and the authorized bank of the Stavropol Territory Government, "StavropolProm-StroiBank" (with a regional network in 11 towns and areas).

Due to the wide and well-developed network of correspondent business with foreign banks, branches of "Vneshtorgbank" and Savings Bank of the Russian Federation in the Stavropol Territory are capable of carrying out commission payments by order of its clients in 94 foreign banks located in 33 countries all over the world.

Banks of the Stavropol Territory accept credit cards such as VISA, Eurocard/Mastercard (Europay) and travelers' checks such as American Express and Thomas Cook. One hundred and ten currency exchange centers operate in the Stavropol Territory.

Seventeen insurance companies found their niche and function successfully here including one of the leading state insurance companies "Rosgosstrah".

Land and real estate

Obviously a secondary land market has been established in the Stavropol Territory. In the process of privatization of state-owned lands, the land shares were distributed between 352.6 thousand people. Agricultural enterprises and landowners came to an agreement to cultivate 3370.4 hectares of lands. The process of privatization and forming joint-stock companies in all the spheres of the economy has virtually come to an end.

While privatizing state and public industries, it became possible both for national and foreign firms to acquire land shares with companies' buildings on them. "Nagutsi zavod napitkov i mineralnih vod" became an owner of 10 hectares of land and recently an American-Russian joint venture "Coca Cola Stavropolie Bottlers" was established on its basis. According to the Regulations of this company, part of the company including its land belongs to the American Company "Coca Cola Export Corporation".

A range of enterprises which are still in the process of being built and in relatively good condition are of great interest of both national and foreign investor who supply the Stavropol Territory with industrial equipment.

About 90 companies and entrepreneurs who form this market help to arrange transactions on buying and selling real estate.

Tourism and recreation

The Stavropol Territory is famous for medicinal mineral and mud springs. Mineral springs like Narzan, which won the highest prize on the international exhibition in Reims, France. Essentuky-4, Essentuky-17, Essentuky-40, Mashuk, Slavyanovskaia and Smimovskaia are famous worldwide. This area, very rich in springs, houses a world famous recreational complex, which is called Kavkazskie MineralnyVody (KMV). It includes such towns as Pyatigorsk, Kislovodsk, Essentuky and Zheleznovodsk. On this relatively small territory of health resorts, 130 mineral springs were detected, 90 of which are used for medical purposes. Abundance of sun, transparency and cleanness of mountain air, luxurious flora and mineral springs made this place a famous resort. The natural treasury of healing mineral mud which has unique medical characteristics is found at Tambukan lake, located in the surroundings of Pyatigorsk. The motorway and railway connect these small health resorts. MineralnyVody Airport offers flights to the biggest Russian and foreign cities.

There are more than 100 sanatoriums and rl boarding houses in the Stavropol Territory. They are situated in picturesque locations at the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains. Their accommodation capacity is more than 26000 people and they successfully treat a wide range of common diseases of the nervous system, alimentary canal, liver, bilious canals, cardio-vascular and endocrine systems, as well as skin and motor systems. KMV health resorts' capacity amounts to one million patients a year. On completing the course of treatment, people feel energetic and healthy. A lot of attention is given to dietary nutrition. A number of green houses were built to supply cafeterias with natural pesticide free products throughout the winter. High quality service and medical treatment exceed the required standards. Unforgettable landscape adorned by high peaks of the Main Caucasus Range with its two-headed giant Elbrus calls forth a rapid evelopment of tourism. Comfortable accommodations designed to house businessmen and tourists are wide spread in the Stavropol Territory. Among them is the four star recreational center "Intourist-Narzan" in Kislovodsk and the three star hotels "Intourist" in Stavropol and Pyatigorsk.