Prokhorov becomes resident of the middle of nowhere

22 May, 2009 11:06 / Updated 16 years ago

Russia’s richest man, Mikhail Prokhorov, has moved his official address from Moscow to the remote town of Yeruda in Siberia’s Krasnoyarsk region.

Prokhorov, who through his corporate vehicle, Onexim Group, controls major stakes in Polyus Gold, Russia’s largest gold producer, and aluminium giant, Rusal, believes in paying his personal income tax in the region where the bulk of his wealth is generated from, and the Krasnoyarsk region is where the bulk of Polyus gold’s production assets are located.

The move, which has been confirmed by Onexim Group, has caught local officials by surprise according to Mikhail Razvozhayev, a spokesman for the Krasnoyarsk region Governor.

"We learned about this literally a few days ago. It interests us because in all likelihood it means Prokhorov will be paying income tax here,"