MOSCOW, October 18 (RIA Novosti) - Oleg Deripaska, Russia's sixth-richest man according to Forbes Russia, is planning to buy a large stake in Expert magazine, a source close to the Russian weekly business publication said Wednesday.
"It will not be a controlling stake, but close to a blocking stake," the source said, adding that the deal is still being negotiated.
Expert magazine is a popular business and analytical publication with a circulation of about 85,000.
Deripaska was the world's 62nd wealthiest man in 2006. He also owns Russian Aluminum, a leading aluminum company. He is a vice president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and a member of the Government Council on Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship.
The source said publishers of Expert magazine will announce a new media holding comprising a new magazine, several Internet-based projects and a TV channel.
"We are hoping to attract $50 million in investments in the next five to six years to implement this project," the source said.
A working title for the new publication is Russian Reporter. It will become the Russian analogue of the European Le Figaro and Stern, and will target Russia's middle class.
"We are planning to reach a circulation of 300,000 in three to five years," he said.
The holding will also launch a TV channel broadcasting news, analytical programs, documentaries and feature films, the source said.
"This project is the least developed," he said. "It will be launched next year."
