Nornickel has signed an agreement with Belarusian truck maker Belaz to manufacture and supply mining equipment to replace Western-made machinery on the Russian market, Nornickel said in a statement on Friday.
The agreement with Belaz will help Russian mining companies minimise risks of sanctions and ensure import substitution of mining equipment in the market, Nornickel said.
Nornickel, the world’s largest producer of palladium and a major producer of refined nickel, is not subject to direct Western sanctions, though sanctions against Moscow have prompted some Western producers to avoid buying Russian metal, complicated payments and restricted access to Western equipment, leading Nornickel to redirect sales to Asia.
(Reporting by Anastasia Lyrchikova; editing by David Evans)
