Russian Factory Renews Supply of Agricultural Machinery to Iraq

The Rostselmash factory has renewed its supply of agricultural machinery to Iraq. The press office of leading share-holders New Commonwealth said the first delivery consisting of 50 CK-5M-1 NIVA combines arrived in Syria on Thursday, from where it will be transported to Iraq. Three Rostselmash technical specialists will supervise the unloading of the combines in Syria and their subsequent loading onto road transport. Then the specialists will travel to Baghdad where they will help to install the machinery and give some instruction to agricultural specialists about how to use the machinery.

Between 1975 and 1977 the USSR supplied Iraq with more than a thousand NIVA combines from Rostov. The difficult political situation in the Middle East during the 1980s meant this cooperation in the sphere of agriculture then came to a standstill.

Rostselmash produces 70% of its combines in Russia. The main share-holders of the company are New Commonwealth (54%) and the Russian government (20.28%). Output in the first quarter of 2002 exceeded the estimated total (estimate made in 2001) by 38% - over USD 25 million. Profits of the company in 2001 totaled almost USD 5 million compared with less than USD 1.5 million in 2000.