On September 14, 2004 a meeting dedicated the celebrating of registration 100,000th telephone ports supplied by IskraTel (Slovenia) in the Republic of Komi was held in Ukhta.

A. Polenets, General director of LLC IskraTel, V. I. Shumeiko, First Deputy General director of OJSC North-West Telecom, and V. A. Kozlov, General director of OJSC Sviaz of the Republic of Komi were participated at the meeting.

Opening the meeting, Vikenty Kozlov, General director of OJSC Sviaz of the Republic of noted that the registration of the 100,000th IskraTel port was a great achievement of the Republic’s communication business. 

The head of the Republic of Komi V. A. Torlopov greeted the audience saying that the Republic’s administration valued communications as a strategic industry for the entire economy and social sector. 

First Deputy General Manager of OJSC North-West Telecom V. I. Shumeiko emphasized in his speech that IskraTel is a long-time partner for NWT. In 2003 alone, over 70,000 ports were installed in several localities of the North-West, and 50,000 ports more are planned. 

General Manager of IskraTel A. Polenets remarked that his company has great plans for the Republic of Komi and the North-West in general. Implementation of multiservice networks has started in the region, which opens tremendous prospects for IskraTel. 

Within the framework of the meeting, a video conference was held with Ust-Kulom and Obyachevo, the localities where IskraTel-supplied digital telephone exchanges were built in 2004. Also, video communication with the IskraTel factory in Slovenia was established. Video conference parties from rural districts noted qualitative changes in communication services. Reliable communication has a sizeable impact on the development of business activities, and on social aspects in rural areas. Indeed, communication wires are sometimes the only link for remote backwoods communication lines to connect them to the «mainland».