4 August 2011, St Petersburg – Etalon Group Limited (“Etalon Group” or the “Company”), one of Russia’s largest residential real estate developers, today announces that it has signed a construction services agreement with ExpoForum to become the general building contractor for the first stage of a major congress and exhibition centre in St Petersburg. The contracting entities are Etalon Group’s CJSC SSMO LenSpetsSMU and CJSC ExpoForum.

The new multi-use complex will be located in St Petersburg’s Shushary town, and will consist of a number of different facilities including a congress centre, exhibition halls, two hotels (4-star and 3-star), two business centres, an administrative office, warehouse and open parking.

The estimated value of the contract for the first stage of construction is 14 billion rubles inclusive of VAT, with the final amount to be determined based on the actual work carried out.

The work is due to commence on 1 August 2011 and to complete by 31 October 2013.

Viacheslav Zarenkov, Chairman of Etalon Group, said:

“We are proud to have been selected by ExpoForum to manage the construction of this landmark project in St Petersburg, a testament to our long track record and the consistent quality of our work. Moreover, this project in itself is a further demonstration of the continued recovery in construction volumes in our key regions.”

Etalon Group is one of Russia’s largest residential real estate developers. Since its inception in 1987, the Company has built a leading position in the St. Petersburg Metropolitan Area, where it has recorded an 11% average annual market share of total residential completions in the private sector (excluding individual construction) between 2000 and 2010. It also has a growing presence in the Moscow Metropolitan Area.

Etalon Group has a strong portfolio focused on large-scale residential complexes, targeting the lower middle class and upper economy class price segments, providing high quality living at affordable prices. The Company’s portfolio comprised 28 projects, as of 31 December 2010, with a total of 3.13 million sqm of unsold net sellable area (“NSA”) in the St. Petersburg and Moscow Metropolitan Areas. For the year ended December 31 2010, the Company recorded revenues of RUB 20.3 billion (USD 669 Million) and EBITDA of RUB 6.9 billion (USD 227 Million), with an EBITDA margin of 34%.