Nikolay Shvets, General Director of Interregional Distribution Grid Companies Holding (IDGC Holding) was elected as a Chairman of Council of Non-Commercial Partnership "CIRED National Organising Committee. Electric Power Distribution" by a solid vote on General Assembly in Saint Petersburg on July 20, 2012.
At the same time IDGC Holding and all its subsidiaries became fully legitimate members of Russian Committee of CIRED, a the major international association with a head office in Brussels, which is connecting distribution grid companies from 40 countries.
Previously, the Interregional Distribution Grid Companies have made the decision to join the CIRED on Board of Directors. Decision of IDGC Holding entrance to CIRED was made by its Board of Directors according to Directive of the Russian Government.
The participation of the distribution grid companies in such authoritative international organization (see the reference below) resulting from necessity to join up-to-date global achievement and advanced design in engineering, construction and exploitation of distribution grid. This participation is the logical move towards integration of the Russian distribution grid companies to global electricity conjuncture.
In the near future members of the Partnership will approve a detailed plan of Russian Committee participation in CIRED work. This work includes organization of technical conferences and panels in RF area, official reports in internationalworkshops and forums abroad, exchange of specialists and methods, training and consulting, participation in joint and special-order research and advanced development and design and development work, other areas of focus.

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* CIRED (International Conference on Electricity Distribution) - the largest international organization which is dedicated to the electricity distribution and electricity supply of consumers, including economical part (cost reduction, organization and management of electricity supply, development of electricity market, planning).
CIRED works for the purpose of increasing the business relevant competencies, skills and knowledge of those who see themselves as a part of the electricity distribution community, whether they are from the utility, product, consultancy, service, business or Academic sector. CIRED is dedicated to the design, construction and operation of public distribution systems and of large installations using electrical energy in industry, services and transport.
The first CIRED Conference was in May 1971 organised by AIM - Association des Ingénieurs de Montefiore, Belgium, as the result of the interest shown in their previous conference held in Liège in 1969 on the same subject. Similarly, in the UK, the large amount of interest shown in conferences on electricity distribution held in Edinburgh by the UK Electrical Research Association (ERA) in 1967 and by the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) and ERA jointly in 1970 demonstrated the need for an international conference on this subject. In order to avoid a major overlap between the existing conferences, it was decided to hold a conference every two years, under the name of CIRED, alternately in Belgium and the United Kingdom.
The growing interest in CIRED activities and the increasingly important part of the exhibition have led the organizers to move outside from Belgium and the UK and to consider every two years changing venue in Europe. To support its objectives CIRED’s Technical Committee provides technical structure and content including papers and speakers to a biennial conference on developments and best practices in technology and management of electricity distribution.These conferences are open to participation by and contributions from experts from all over the world. The conferences which include an exhibition by manufacturing and other companies sup¬plying the electricity distribution industry are organised alternately by AIM (Belgium) and IEE (UK) who also bear the financial responsibility of the conferences.
Russia is a participant of the International Association CIRED since 1999. Nowadays Liaison Committee of CIRED in the Russian Federation is represented by Non-Commercial Partnership "CIRED National Organising Commit¬tee. Electric Power Distribution" based on Petersburg Energy Institute of Upgrade Qualifications.