20 October, Vitebsk /Diana Kurilo - BELTA/. Agreements reached at the meetings of the CIS Council of Heads of Government and the EurAsEC Interstate Council give enterprises confidence in simplifying foreign economic relations. This viewpoint was expressed to a BELTA correspondent by Mikhail Lazarashvili, Director of OJSC "Keramzit Gravel Plant of Novolukoml". In his opinion, for stable operation, exporters need unified customs regulations and simplified schemes for the movement of capital and goods. Mikhail Lazarashvili also paid attention to the statements of the head of the Russian government on reaching new agreements between Belarus and Russia in energy cooperation and achieving lower gas prices for Belarus. For an energy-intensive enterprise like the keramzit gravel plant, the price of gas plays an important role in increasing competitiveness. Its reduction will allow for the expansion of sales markets, and there is no question of competition with Russian manufacturers of building materials. "In the total export volume, Russian buyers account for only 10%; the rest of the products are sent to European states. A reduction in the price of gas will allow us to compete in the Western European market on price and find new partners," he explained. OJSC "Keramzit Gravel Plant of Novolukoml" produces keramzit gravel of various fractions and has also mastered the pilot production of keramzit concrete blocks. The demand for Belarusian gravel in EU countries is quite high, which is explained by its high strength with comparable thermal conductivity indicators of keramzit produced in Europe. The plant's products comply with the requirements of standards in force in Belarus and the EU, and have CE marking, which grants the right for their import into the EU territory and use in construction in the European Union countries. -0-

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