OREANDA-NEWS. On May 20, 2009 A ceremony dedicated to completion of restoration of the facades in the Metropolitan and Prosphora buildings of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra (monastery) was held in Saint Petersburg, reported the press-centre of TNK-BP.

Ceremony was participated by Valentina Matvienko, Governor of Saint Petersburg, Metropolitan Vladimir of Saint Petersburg and Ladoga, and Timothy Summers, Chairman of the Management Board of TNK-BP.

“We are continuing restoration of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra as a unique national monument protected by UNESCO. This is a center of Christian Orthodox culture in Russia and northwest. Its restoration is conducive to resurgence of Russia,” said the Governor. According to her, this year TNK-BP will continue its financial support for restoration of the monastery and allocate 35 million rubles. The company will spend another 45 million rubles for completing restoration of the Trinity Cathedral dome. The municipal authorities will pay for renewal of the cathedral facade, and restoration of the cathedral will be completed by the end of this year.

According to Mr. Summers, Saint Petersburg is a city of great importance for TNK-BP. “The value of business is not measured only by the quantity of products and income. The soul of business is in its deeds,” said Mr. Summers. Restoration works at the Alexander Nevsky Lavra began in 2004. By that time, the walls of the monastery were very dirty, creviced and battered, the fretwork lost its clarity and crispness, and the door and windows required repair.

In 2004, the Governor of Saint Petersburg headed the “Saint Petersburg Development Fund,” which was established at the initiative of her and Sergey Sobyanin, Governor of the Tyumen Region. Ms. Matvienko stressed that TNK-BP was the first to accede to the fund’s request and always scrupulously fulfilled its commitments and obligations. Since 2004, the company has transferred more than 1.2 billion rubles to the fund for implementation of various projects, including restoration of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.