Norilsk Nickel, UC RUSAL deny merger plans

Norilsk Nickel and UC RUSAL will not be holding merger talks during the next three years, said Vladimir Potanin, Interros president and chairman of Norilsk Nickel's board of directors. Each company is currently experiencing certain problems, Potanin explained, adding that the shareholders' goal was to focus on these problems and overcome them. As reported earlier, rumors were spread in mid-2008 that Deripaska and Potanin were in talks over a possible merger between the two giants, although UC RUSAL officially denied having such plans. ---www.rbcnews.com