South Korean Firms Win $5.1bn Deal to Construct Fertilizer Factory in Russia

A South Korea-led consortium has signed a US$5.1 billion deal to construct a massive fertilizer production factory in Russia's eastern port city of Nakhodka, Seoul's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Sunday. 
The signing of the deal took place on Saturday after President Park Geun-hye and her Russia counterpart Vladimir Putin held a summit on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Russia's Far East city of Vladivostok, Yonhap news agency reported. 
The consortium consisting of Hyundai Engineering Co., Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., and Japan's Toyo won the deal from Russia's Nakhodka Mineral Fertilizers Factory, a subsidiary of the National Chemical Group. 
The consortium was selected as a preferred bidder in September 2014. 
Meanwhile, Seoul and Moscow plan to hold government consultations over a mooted free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) on October 5, Cheong Wa Dae said. 
Since December, the two sides have been conducting a joint feasibility study on the FTA between South Korea and the bloc consisting of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. 
The EAEU, launched in January 2015, is a customs union. It has a combined population of 180 million with its gross domestic product reaching US$1.6 trillion. 
The bloc has already signed an FTA with Vietnam, which is slated to go into effect next month, while it has carried out or is currently conducting joint feasibility studies over separate FTAs with Egypt, Israel and India.