Superyacht of Russian oligarch docked at Vittoriosa marina amid sanctions

Mar 4 2022

A Superyacht which is owned by a Russian multi-millionaire with Maltese citizenship sailed and docked in the Grand Harbour this Friday.

This comes as several countries press sanction on allies of Vladimir Putin following the invasion of neighbouring Ukraine. The 70-meter Polaris is owned by Maxim Shubarev, who pursed Maltese citizenship in 2018.

Sources revealed that Shubarev was not personally on board the vessel which is in turn held by Polaris Charters limited, a Malta-based company owned by Shubarev.

The 59-year-old oligarch is the chairman of Setl Group, a major Russian construction company based in St Petersburg. Online sites estimate that he has a net worth of around $500 million.

Following the invasion, the EU issued sanctions against 680 individuals and 53 entities linked to the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. The sanctions are meant to target wealthy Russians and thus limit their movement but Shubarev does not appear to be on the list of oligarchs to be sanctioned.

The Maltese government has revealed none of the Russian oligarchs sanctioned by the EU so far have Maltese citizenship. This follows a special address earlier this week by European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, who said that European ports must be closed off to the super yachts owned by wealthy Russians.

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Photo Source: Newsbook (Miguela Xuereb)

Melita fibre cable damage cuts internet service in south of Malta

Mar 4 2022

Melita announced that one of their fibre cables has been damaged, leading to internet cut-offs for any customers in the south of Malta. The company stated that the damage was resulting in no service for customers and that it could take up to four hours to repair.

Melita informed its clients that work is being undertaken to fix the cable, updating everyone on the situation. The company’s Paola, Tarxien, Ghaxaq and Marsaskala outlets are also being affected and thus temporarily closed.

These are the localities impacted by the shortage:

Birgu, Birzebbuga, Bormla, Bulebel, Delimara, Fawwara, Fgura, Għaxaq, Gudja, Ħal Far, Kalkara, Kirkop, Kordin, Marsa, Marsaskala, Marsaxlokk, MIA, Mqabba, Paola, Qajjenza, Qrendi, Safi, Senglea, Smart City, St Lucia, Tarxien, Xgħajra, Zabbar, Zejtun and Zurrieq.

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Youths more worried about cost of living in Malta than grey-listing

Mar 4 2022

According to a survey commissioned by the Times of Malta, concerns about rising prices and cost of living have shot up over just six months. A quarter of respondents, at 25.2%, stated that the cost of living is one of the country’s biggest issues. This is up from 6.3% in August. The survey was carried out between February 14th and February 24h by market research firm Esprimi.

Price concerns were just slightly below worries about healthcare and the COVID-19 pandemic. Health was cited as one of the main problems the country is facing by 27.2% of people. In third place was corruption, with 20.8% of respondents citing the issue. Half of the people who claimed they vote for the Nationalist Party cited corruption as one of the country’s problems.

On the other side of the coin, corruption was only brought up as an issue by 7.3% of people who said they intend to vote for Labour in the next general election. This follows a governmental move to ease public concern about rising prices through handouts as well as energy and fuel bill freezing. If the concerns were broken down, cost of living increases were cited as a problem by youths the most. A total of 42.5% of people aged between 16 and 24 mentioned prices as being of the country’s main issues.

Both the environment and the grey listing of Malta feature very low on the list of concerns. Only 12.3% raised the environment as being one of the country’s problem, below traffic, parking and public transport at 13.3%. As for the grey-listing, only 6.5% of people brought it up. The economy was cited as a problem by 5.3% of people, and the government as a whole by just 1.3%. Malta’s reputation abroad only factored in at a minimal 0.8%.

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New plane hangar inaugurated by Prime Minister to create over 500 jobs

Mar 4 2022

The company SR Technics, operating within the aviation sector, inaugurated the expansion of a new hangar which will serve to provide maintenance for airplanes in our country. With the investment amounting up to €42 million , the hangar stretches up to 40,000 metres squared and will provide enough space to modify up to six planes (of Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 type) at the same time.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by Malta’s prime minister Robert Abela along with SR Technics chief executive Jean-Marc Lenz and Swiss ambassador Monika Schmutz Kirgöz. The Prime Minister stated in his speech that he is very satisfied that these facilities are being built as they push Malta forward and at the forefront in Europe in the maintenance sector and industry.

Abela explained how this inauguration is a celebration of the collective effort by our country which worked tirelessly to attract the investment as well as taking care of the investors. This was aided by the COVID Wage Supplement, said the Prime Minister.

Hundreds of jobs of quality employment will be created through this inauguration, said the Labour Party leader, especially for the youth of Malta. ‘I believe we must set up a specific aviation education centre that will cater for the needs of the industry.’

‘Today, the outlook is looking much brighter, although the industry still faces a long road to full recovery. You face challenges in maintenance, supply chain difficulties, system inconsistencies and spiralling costs. And my government stands ready to help.’ Minister Miriam Dalli also spoke during the event, saying that the government always believed in companies like SR Technics. ‘This is evidenced by the immense investment carried out in various industries, particularly during the pandemic’ she said.

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