Russia to open aluminium market after RUSAL deal

MOSCOW, Oct 9 (Reuters) - Russia will open its aluminium market to international companies in order to prevent a new Russian aluminium giant, created by the merger of RUSAL and SUAL, having a monopoly, Economy and Trade Minister German Gref said on Monday.

Russia's two aluminium producers have agreed to merge in a deal also involving Swiss trader Glencore to create the world's largest producer of the metal.

"We need to take adequate measures on the part of the government to provide competition for such a strong holding in the Russian market," Gref told reporters.

"This means in the first place external trade regulation, customs tariffs ... in order that users will not suffer," he said.

"If (the new company) does not have any competitors in the domestic market, we need to remove all barriers from our borders so that competition can come here," he said.

Gref added that the government had not been the initiator in the deal to merge RUSAL, SUAL and Glencore.

Alcoa Inc. and Hydro Aluminium, a unit of Norwegian energy and metals group Norsk Hydro, are both considering investing in new energy and smelter projects in the Russian Far East.