Reborn Russia As An Oligarch

Grezlov nodded without hesitation, "Misha is very confident, and I believe him too. After all, he is the expert in the energy industry. And his predictions have never failed."

Gebrev also said next to him: "Misha is trustworthy in this regard, and his vision has always been very sharp. It seems that international crude oil prices and natural gas prices will rise next year. If he dares to make such a judgment, there must be someone else." basis."

Pu Ding nodded slightly and no longer questioned.

Obviously, as the chairman of Yukos Group and the majority shareholder of Gazprom, Wang Ye must know far more about the trends in the energy market than the average person and has more information at his disposal.

Since he said crude oil and natural gas prices will rise significantly next year, that should be it.

As for the government's fiscal revenue estimates, they may be too conservative!

But this is not surprising. The government would rather be conservative in setting goals than set a goal that is difficult or even impossible to achieve.

Besides, their current fiscal revenue estimate is as high as 2.6 trillion rubles, and the GDP growth rate has reached 7.2%!

This goal is indeed not too low...

If next year’s actual income and growth rate exceed this target, everyone will be happy.

If the goal is barely achieved, it can be considered a credit and a job well done.

So there is no need for them to take risks and set a double-digit GDP growth rate, which is understandable.

However, Wang Ye is obviously more optimistic about next year's economic development.

But he did not change the government's fiscal revenue estimates and GDP growth rate, but only raised the fiscal expenditure budget!

I have to say, this guy is really cunning!

Because everyone will definitely support the matter of "spending more money".

If you want people to "make more money", you will encounter greater resistance...

…………

“I think there’s no problem!

Since you are all unanimously optimistic about next year's economic development and are so confident, it's too late for me to be happy, so how can I object?

And Misha is right, our security environment at home and abroad is indeed facing challenges, and the budgets of the internal affairs department and the security service need to be allocated more.

There are also higher education, scientific research investment, etc.

Alas, there are so many places to spend money. "

Puding shook his head and sighed, but a smile appeared on his face.

You know, next year is an election year!

At this time, the royal family took the initiative to say that the economy would develop better next year and significantly increase fiscal spending.

On the surface, the beneficiaries are the internal affairs department, the Security Bureau, higher education and other institutions, but in fact, Puding himself will also benefit greatly!

Because it is under his leadership and understanding of people, the country's economy has continued to grow at a high speed in the past two years!

In 2002, GDP growth was 6.1%!

In 2003, GDP growth was 7%!

In the coming 2004, GDP growth is expected to reach double digits!

The development momentum is rapid...

Whose credit is this?

The general public should be aware of this.

Of course, Puding also understands that Wang Ye has definitely made a huge contribution to the rapid increase in GDP growth in the past two years!

Assisted Yukos Group in acquiring Sibneft and integrating the oil industry.

Taking the lead in getting China and Russia to sign huge energy orders, it opened up a huge new market for domestically produced excess crude oil and natural gas.

Acquired three major automobile brands and invested heavily in building an automobile production base in Moscow State...

This series of big moves directly boosted GDP growth!

It is no exaggeration to say that without Wang Ye's business initiatives, the GDP growth rate in the past two years would have been reduced by at least two percentage points or more!

All of this is not only the contribution of Wang Ye, but also the contribution of Ke Gong.

It is precisely the support and guidance directly behind the scenes that Wang Ye can successfully accomplish these things.

What does it mean to know people and be kind to them? This is it!

…………

The most critical step has passed, and the Kremlin has expressed support for this new fiscal expenditure budget.

Of course, this also means that the first faction has reached a consensus, and the Duma Congress will also support this new plan.

Coupled with Wang Ye's communication and coordination within the third faction, there is no suspense about the adoption of this new plan.

After discussing the financial budget, Gorbrev turned the topic to the upcoming Duma general election.

He smiled and asked: "Has Misha talked to you recently?"

Grezlov didn't react at first, so he subconsciously asked, "What are you talking about?"

"The members of your faction have switched to the third faction." Gebrev said.

"Oh..., of course. He came to my office to talk about this matter a few days ago. He was probably very surprised, but I excused him, saying that he was looking for a way out after some hills within the faction were abandoned. "Grezlov laughed.

Puding also smiled, of course he knew what was going on.

In fact, he was the one behind this!

"But..., do you really not have to worry about Misha... losing his tail in the future?" Gryzlov said a little worriedly.

Recently, he sometimes felt faintly worried.

Because Misha’s power has grown so fast!

He has very good conditions, has huge assets, and does not need to worry about funds.

He is young and has a strong upward momentum. Both ordinary people and politicians are very optimistic about his future development.

Now we have to add the strong support from the Kremlin behind it...

Is there really nothing to worry about?

Of course, this issue has been discussed within the Kremlin palace for a long time.

So Puding didn't speak, and Gebrev answered Gryzlov's question.

"Don't worry, because Misha is one of our own!

Moreover, for a long time, he was unlikely to have any greater ambitions.

Therefore, no matter how fast his power develops, it will not cause any backlash, so there is no need to worry about this. "

Gorbrev said calmly.

In fact, Gryzlov understood all the reasons mentioned by Gorbrev, but he was just worried...

I can’t tell you why, maybe it’s the so-called sixth sense!

But in front of Pu Ding, he again talked about his own feelings, so he could only shake his head and never mention it again.

Because Gryzlov also understands that in terms of relationship and trust, perhaps in the eyes of the Kremlin, Misha is already ahead of him!

From the moment Misha and Rosiana are officially engaged...

Just kidding, I and Katsura have the same interests, they are just trustworthy partners.

But as for Misha, that is his "son-in-law"!

So he wisely changed the topic and started talking about some interesting things that happened recently.

"You guys must have heard that all the members of Hovchenko's faction have recently gone down to the city below to give speeches and send black messages. They really don't regard money as money. Now everyone is saying that Hovchenko They are running a campaign for Black Leba."

How could Puding and Gebrev not know!

Hovchenko is a potential opponent next year.

Although they are not very optimistic that Kovchenko can make any big moves, the Kremlin has not ignored him.

You can despise it strategically, but you must pay attention to it tactically!

Therefore, every move made by Hovchenko and the others is under the attention of the Kremlin.

Speaking of this "Black Leba Campaign", both Puding and Gebrev laughed. Of course they knew!

This is talking about the new campaign strategy launched by Kovchenko and his faction.

Each faction will conduct publicity and roadshows in the constituencies of the following states to attract votes. There are often campaign staff with relatively sufficient financial resources to send gifts to voters in order to increase their good impression among voters.

Of course, no matter how much you say, it is not as practical as giving more gifts to voters.

When Wang Ye ran for the Duma, he sent vodka directly to adults in the entire state. Everyone had a share. That was a big deal!

But it was also because Chukotka State had a small population, and Wang Ye was rich and could afford it.

Such generous gifts are rare.

Under normal circumstances, when other congressmen campaign, they give small gifts such as candies and eggs, which are not expensive.

But recently, Kovchenko and his faction came up with a "Heleba campaign" strategy that caught everyone's attention.

It means that in a certain constituency, one or more bakeries are directly purchased to produce only one kind of bread, which is the big black bread that Lao Maozi often eats.

Then during the roadshow, they promised to give each voter who voted for them a bread coupon every day. With the bread coupon, they can receive a free big bread at the designated bakery...

In Russia, Daleb is just like the steamed buns in the north of the country. It is a staple food that everyone cannot live without and is a must-have for the family!

The price is not expensive either. A big Leba usually costs about six rubles, which is 0.2 US dollars, or two RMB...

Moreover, this kind of big ribba is quite big, and one is enough for a family to eat one or even two meals.

This is quite a feat!

Even though a big Liba doesn’t have much money, you can’t afford to give it away in large quantities and for a long time!

Even if there are two million people in their "main battlefield" in a certain state, and one million of them are members of the Kovchenko faction, that is one million votes, which is equivalent to giving out one million bread coupons every day, worth two hundred thousand Beautiful knife!

So that’s $70 million a year!

Of course, this is calculated based on the retail price of Black Leba.

If calculated based on the cost price of mass production, it would cost US$20 million.

In other words, Kovchenko and his faction plan to get a Duma seat at a cost of 20 million US dollars!

If there are fifty seats, that's one billion dollars...

This is only the cost of sending Black Lieba, plus the cost of campaign promotion. It is estimated that the expenditure will be as high as 25 million or even 30 million US dollars for each seat won!

This is not just about being rich and wealthy, it is simply crazy!

Under normal circumstances, the cost for other factions to run for a Duma seat usually does not exceed US$2 million.

Unless the candidates participating in the election themselves are very wealthy and are willing to use their own money to increase campaign funds, or have the ability to attract political donations, two million US dollars is the maximum.

This is also everyone’s default capital dividing line.

And Hovchenko directly raised this line more than ten times!

But it has to be said that this campaign strategy is still very effective and makes other factions nervous.

Although everyone is making fun of this black Leba campaign, they still feel sour in their hearts...

If one's own faction is so rich, who wouldn't want to use this method? It's simple and effective!

Fortunately, the main battlefields chosen by Kovchenko and his faction were located in the two large constituencies of Moscow Region and Petersburg, which were away from the sphere of influence of the Wang Ye faction.

Otherwise, Wang Ye would have a headache.

Although in terms of wealth, he may not be inferior to Kovchenko.

But in terms of cash flow alone, he is far behind!

Others may not know it, but Wang Ye knows very well that there are billions of dollars in cash lying in Hovchenko's account!

More importantly, Hovchenko is really willing to spend money for this election.

Anyway, he rarely invests in business now, and he has so much cash in his hands, so he is naturally willing to spend it.

Although Wang Ye's net worth is higher, his business layout has not yet been completed, and he still needs large investments in many places, so the money that can be spent on elections is limited.

Therefore, if he had a choice, Wang Ye would not want to "confront" Hovchenko!

Fortunately, the two main battlefields chosen by the Kovchenko faction are Moscow and Petersburg, the two largest constituencies with the most concentrated populations, the most developed economies, and naturally the most votes.

The constituencies Wang Ye chose for his faction were relatively far away from these hot spots.

It's not his turn to have a headache anyway.

After all, everyone knows that the Moscow constituency is the traditional sphere of influence of the second faction.

As for the Petersburg constituency, it is the sphere of influence of the first faction, and it is also the birthplace of the Kremlin!

Let them go to the three families to fight. Wang Ye doesn't want to get involved...

…………

"This matter is still worth paying attention to. It's okay to give Kovchenko and the others forty or fifty Duma seats. It doesn't matter even a little more. But they must not be allowed to get more than eighty seats! Otherwise, the Duma in the future will The horses are going to get into trouble!”

Puding said meaningfully.

Gebrev nodded quickly and said: "Yes! A few dozen seats won't make any waves, but once the seats reach a hundred, it means that no faction can have an absolute advantage in the next Duma. Even None of us can do it. If we want to pass any resolution, there will be many factions that need to communicate and coordinate."

The number of seats for the first faction will definitely drop next year, even significantly!

This was all expected, and even the Kremlin was quietly promoting it behind the scenes.

Wang Ye’s faction will get more seats, guaranteed to be 100!

This is also a tacit understanding reached by everyone, and the Kremlin is also driving it behind the scenes.

The current second faction, the so-called "Moscow faction", will have its strength reduced and its seats will be divided among other factions.

This is what Wang Ye has negotiated with the First Faction, and it is also a piece of fat that Wang Ye is eyeing.

Of course, a considerable part of the seats that the Kovchenko faction will get will also come from the second faction.

After all, their key constituencies overlap with the Moscow faction's sphere of influence...