Russia is planning import restrictions and new procurement deals to help Oleg Deripaska's beleaguered aluminum business

To help Oleg Deripaska’s sanctioned business, Rusal, the Russian government is reportedly planning to limit aluminum imports and stimulate domestic demand with new government procurement orders. According to the newspaper Kommersant, this is part of the government’s five-year “road map” for developing Russia’s aluminum industry, which Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak announced in late June. The state procurement orders are reportedly intended to boost demand for aluminum at home by 2.5 times.

In early April, the U.S. Treasury Department placed Oleg Deripaska under sanctions in response to “a range of malign activity around the globe” conducted by the Russian government, which operates “for the disproportionate benefit of oligarchs and government elites.” Washington also sanctioned Deripaska’s assets, including En+ and Rusal, whose international market values promptly collapsed. In late May, En+ Group reportedly asked the Russian government for special privileges, including permission to raise utilities and housing fees in the Irkutsk region.

In early May, the Renova Group conglomerate (owned by Viktor Vekselberg, another sanctioned “oligarch”) reportedly asked the Russian government for a federal bailout, including a ban on imported mineral waters and sodas, in order to help its Baikal holding company.