bne
Wed, 22nd May -- The Kyrgyz government has approved draft legislation denouncing the agreement on the US transit centre at Bishkek's Manas International Airport, President Almazbek Atambayev said on May 21, as Kyrgyzstan continues to seal closer cooperation with Russia.

bne
Wed, 22nd May -- Georgia's former Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili was arrested on May 21 and faces up to 12 years in prison if found guilty on several charges of corruption. The move appears part of the ongoing power struggle between current PM Bidzina Ivanishvili and President Mikheil Saakashvili.

bne
Wed, 22nd May -- Electricite de France (EDF) announced on May 21 that it has entered into an exclusivity agreement with Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding (EPH) over the sale of its 49% stake in Slovak power distributor Stredoslovenska Energetika (SSE). The state-owned utility will be the second French energy major in the last six months to quit Slovakia, with both selling out to the same ravenous Czech buyer.

bne
Wed, 22nd May -- The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is in talks with the Polish treasury ministry over a potential investment in the country's new infrastructure fund. The news is a boost for Warsaw's flagship scheme to try to boost economic growth.

bne
Wed, 22nd May -- As a final decision looms on which pipeline will win the right to carry Azeri gas into Europe, the countries whose territories the Nabucco West gas pipeline will cross adopted a joint declaration on May 21 that suggests the route could be expanded to supply a bigger chunk of CEE.

bne
Tue, 21st May -- The State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Socar), signed an investment agreement with an international consortium to build a $4.8bn refinery in Turkey's Izmir region on May 20.

bne
Tue, 21st May -- The Russian government has no plans to break up Gazprom, a senior offical said on May 20, despite growing pressure on the state-owned gas giant to improve corporate governance and efficiency.

bne
Tue, 21st May -- Tajikistan signed a wide-reaching strategic partnership agreement with China on May 20, including deals covering cooperation in security, the wider economy, and joint development of energy and mineral resources.

bne
Tue, 21st May -- Protest against the liberal government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk is mounting as the effects of the crisis continue to hit Poland. With the populist opposition having taken the lead in polls for the first time in years, the country's three largest trade unions met on May 20 to coordinate wide-scale action.

bne
Tue, 21st May -- Continuing the AKP's drive to make Turkey a regional leader, the Turkish government is set to raise a $1bn credit line promised to Egypt this month by a further $250m, a senior official said on May 20.

bne
Mon, 20th May -- The committee of independent directors at Kazakhstan's Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) announced on May 17 that it has rejected a take-over proposal from the company's founders € alongside the state € despite a deepening corporate governance crisis and fresh accusations of corruption.

bne
Mon, 20th May -- Slovenia suffered another blow to its efforts to avoid becoming the next Eurozone country to require a bailout on May 17, as Fitch Ratings cut the Balkan country's long-term foreign currency rating one notch, to 'BBB+' from 'A-', and warned a further downgrade could be on the way.