At Estonia’s request, Russian Solikamsk Magnesium Plant and its chief executive have been removed from EU’s main sanctions list, - media
The Russian Solikamsk Magnesium Plant and its chief executive, Ruslan Dimukhamedov, have been removed from the EU sanctions list agreed on 7 October. This was done at the request of Estonia.
Radio Liberty learnt of this from diplomats in Brussels, and confirmation was also received from the Estonian Mission to the European Union, according to Censor.NET.
Why was Estonia asked to exempt the factory from sanctions?
In particular, Estonia requested that the Solikamsk Magnesium Plant and its managing director, Ruslan Dimukhamedov, be removed from the list, on the grounds that the plant supplies strategically important raw materials to the Estonian company NPM Silmet.
"Yes, we have asked for a Russian company and an individual associated with it to be removed from the list of nearly 1,600 entries approved today by the Coreper II ambassadors. The company supplies NPM Silmet, based in Estonia, with materials of strategic importance to Europe," said Kersti Lepik, spokesperson for the Permanent Representation of Estonia to the EU.
According to Lepik, European manufacturers of electric vehicles and wind turbines, as well as the EU’s electronics, automotive and aviation industries, are particularly reliant on NPM Silmet’s products.
At the same time, she stated that NPM Silmet is actively seeking alternative sources for the materials it imports from Russia.
"Estonia will revisit the issue of adding a Russian company and an individual associated with it to the sanctions list next year," the spokeswoman added.
- NPM Silmet, located in Sillamäe in north-eastern Estonia, specialises in the processing of rare-earth elements and rare metals.
- The Solikamsk Magnesium Plant, for its part, produces rare-earth metal concentrates, as well as products made from niobium, tantalum, titanium and magnesium. From 2023–2024, the plant came under the control of the Russian state corporation ‘Rosatom’.
What led up to it
It should be recalled that on 7 October, the ambassadors of the EU Member States agreed to add 743 individuals and 826 companies linked to the Russian defence industry to the sanctions list.
