Ukhta
Encyclopedia
Ukhta is an important industrial town in the Komi Republic
of Russia
. Population:
Oil springs along the Ukhta River
were already known in the 17th century. In the mid-19th century, industrialist M. K. Sidorov started to drill for oil in this area. It was one of the first oil wells in Russia. There was homecraft oil-field in 1920–1921 in Ukhta. Lying on the river of the same name, the settlement was founded as the village of Chibyu in 1929, but in 1939 it was renamed Ukhta. It received the town status in 1943 when it was linked to the Pechora Railway. To the east of the city is Sosnogorsk
, and to the southwest Yarega. As well as its rail link Ukhta also has an airport
.
Ukhta lies within the Pechora River
basin, an important oil
and gas
-producing region. The oilfields lie just south of the city. Some of the Ukhta's oil is refined locally; most, however, is piped to oil refineries between St. Petersburg
and Moscow
. There were a few gas pipeline explosions at a distance of five miles from the town since 1990s.
The city expanded in the 1940s and 1950s by use of political prisoners' forced labour.
On July 11, 2005, a Molotov cocktail killed 25 people in a shop. According to a police source the explosion was caused by a gas canister.
Komi Republic
The Komi Republic is a federal subject of Russia .-Geography:The republic is situated to the west of the Ural mountains, in the north-east of the East European Plain...
of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Population:
Oil springs along the Ukhta River
Ukhta River
Ukhta is a river in the Komi republic of Russia. It is a left tributary of the Izhma River . It is 199 km long, with a drainage basin of 4,510 km², and an average discharge of 48.9 m³/s .The river freezes over in October/November, and remains icebound until April.The Ukhta has its...
were already known in the 17th century. In the mid-19th century, industrialist M. K. Sidorov started to drill for oil in this area. It was one of the first oil wells in Russia. There was homecraft oil-field in 1920–1921 in Ukhta. Lying on the river of the same name, the settlement was founded as the village of Chibyu in 1929, but in 1939 it was renamed Ukhta. It received the town status in 1943 when it was linked to the Pechora Railway. To the east of the city is Sosnogorsk
Sosnogorsk
Sosnogorsk is a town in the Komi Republic, Russia, located on the Izhma River. Population: Municipally, it is incorporated as Sosnogorsk Municipal District ....
, and to the southwest Yarega. As well as its rail link Ukhta also has an airport
Ukhta Airport
Ukhta Airport is a civilian airport in Russia located 5 km east of Ukhta . It services medium-sized airliners....
.
Ukhta lies within the Pechora River
Pechora River
The Pechora River is a river in northwest Russia which flows north into the Arctic Ocean on the west side of the Ural Mountains. It lies mostly in the Komi Republic but the northernmost part crosses the Nenets Autonomous Okrug. It is 1,809 km long and its basin is 322,000 square kilometers...
basin, an important oil
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
and gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
-producing region. The oilfields lie just south of the city. Some of the Ukhta's oil is refined locally; most, however, is piped to oil refineries between St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. There were a few gas pipeline explosions at a distance of five miles from the town since 1990s.
The city expanded in the 1940s and 1950s by use of political prisoners' forced labour.
Notable residents
- Sergei KapustinSergei KapustinSergei Alekseevich Kapustin was an ice hockey player who played in the Soviet Hockey League. He played for HC CSKA Moscow, Krylya Sovetov Moscow, and HC Spartak Moscow....
, former USSR national hockey team member who won the 1981 Canada Cup1981 Canada CupThe 1981 Canada Cup was the second best-on-best ice hockey world championship and involved the world's top six hockey nations. Tournament games were held in Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montreal and Ottawa. The Soviet Union defeated Canada in a single game final to win its first title, while Soviet...
. - Roman AbramovichRoman AbramovichRoman Arkadyevich Abramovich is a Russian businessman and the main owner of the private investment company Millhouse LLC.In 2003, Abramovich was named Person of the Year by Expert, a Russian business magazine. He shared this title with Mikhail Khodorkovsky...
, Russian billionaire and the main owner of the private investment companyInvestment companyAn investment company is a company whose main business is holding securities of other companies purely for investment purposes. The investment company invests money on behalf of its shareholders who in turn share in the profits and losses....
Millhouse Capital, referred to as one of the Russian oligarchsRussian oligarchsBusiness oligarch is a near-synonym of the term "business magnate", borrowed by the English speaking and western media from Russian parlance to describe the huge, fast-acquired wealth of some businessmen of the former Soviet republics during privatization in Russia and other post-Soviet states in...
(attended the Industrial Institute of Ukhta before being drafted into the Soviet Army). - Eduard RosselEduard RosselEduard Ergartovich Rossel was the governor of Sverdlovsk Oblast, an oblast in Russia. He was born on October 8, 1937, and is of German origin. He returned into office in 1995. He is a member of the Federation Council of Russia.Eduard Rossel was born a village near Nizhny Novgorod...
, governor of Sverdlovsk Oblast lived in Ukta 1947-57 - Alexander SukhorukovAlexander SukhorukovAlexander Nikolayevich Sukhorukov is a freestyle swimmer from Russia, who won the silver medal in the 4x200m freestyle relay at the 2008 Summer Olympics.-External links:*...
, Olympic swimmer - Olga Mukhina, playwright lived in Ukhta 1976-87
External links
- Ukhta OnLine
- All of Ukhta
- DM's Ukhta site pictures of Ukhta
- Ukhta. History. Nature