Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: I looked at the latest data on the Astrakhan Region and on the whole they are not bad. Industrial output is growing more rapidly here than in the country as a whole; you have been growing at the rate of 14.5%, and Russia at a little over 9%. Wages are edging upwards. And more housing was introduced in the first half of this year than in the same period of last year. However, there are problems. I have noticed that investments in fixed capital have dropped. What is the reason for this? Everything seems to be growing, but investments are falling.

Alexander Zhilkin: Investments from private business and financial institutions will reach the 2009 level by the end of the year. The current dip, as shown in the memorandum, is due to the drop of state budget investments, that is, investments from our regional budget.

This year we expect to be able to reach the pre-crisis production volume and by the end of next year we will increase the tax base to the 2008 level. So, I am not in a position to allocate additional resources. But if someone brings in investments... For example, loans this year increased by 37% from the previous year. Several facilities will be launched by the end of the year which will make up for the lag over the past eight months.

Vladimir Putin: Do I understand that it is a tactical pause?

Alexander Zhilkin: Yes, tactical. We witness this dip because the budget cannot invest the amount it invested in 2008 and in the first quarter of 2009.

Vladimir Putin: You have several major projects with various Russian companies, including, in the energy sector, with LUKoil, Gazprom and several other companies. How are these plans coming along?

Alexander Zhilkin: They are moving forward very actively, especially in the northern Caspian Sea. We began oil production in the northern Caspian Sea in April and we are now preparing to fulfil an order from LUKoil. A new drilling rig of the same size, that's for the next field. I hope our ship-building company will win the tender because we are technically well-equipped for the job. And next year LUKoil will increase its oil output by 2 million tons compared with what it will produce this year.

We are launching the new-generation 110-megawatt thermal power plant in late October. That is part of the investment programme under which LUKoil took a stake in RAO UES Russia at the time it was restructured. The programme they signed with the Russian government is being fulfilled. Construction of a new 235-megawatt thermal power plant will begin in November. All the contracts are being carried out on schedule even though there were some problems with financing the programme last year. They are making up for it this year.

Vladimir Putin: How is the new medical centre working?

Alexander Zhilkin: The medical centre is working wonderfully. There is a huge waiting list, but not because they are not managing it well, but because word of the high quality operations it performs is spreading fast. They have more patients coming every day than they can handle. They carry out 20-25 operations a day. This year they will perform 7,000 operations.

There is great demand for the centre's services in the neighbouring countries, especially Kazakhstan, but they are not yet able to provide the operations for these people. The Health Ministry is preparing the relevant documents to give them a license to carry out paid operations for citizens of neighbouring countries.

Indeed, I think that over time, in a year or two, additional units will have to be installed to expand the centre. But its work last year has already yielded results, it may be too early to say so, but they have performed 3,000 operations.

Births exceed deaths, not only because more babies are born, but also because the mortality rate is going down, especially deaths from cardio-vascular diseases. The trend has been positive for three years and the population is growing steadily this year. I hope this will continue in the following years.

Vladimir Putin: Very good. When are we going to finish the theatre?

Alexander Zhilkin: I was just about to report to you on that. As you say, on October 27-30.

Vladimir Putin: Good.