Ukraine's richest man Rinat Akhmetov might be selected by the Bulgarian government to run the operation of the troubled steel mill Kremikovtzi during the plant's ongoing insolvency procedure. The news were reported Monday by the Bulgarian newspaper Standart Daily. The reports about Akhmetov's interest in Kremikovtzi, and the negotiations between the plant's syndicates and his representatives were confirmed Monday by the factory leader of the Podkrepa Labor Confederation Lyudmil Pavlov in an interview for the Darik Radio. According to the rankings of the Polish magazine Wprost, Rinat Akhmetov is the second richest Eastern European with a fortune of USD 23bn. He is the founder and president of the SCM Holdings, and his mining, coal, and steel holding Metinvest is among the leading global companies in the field. Akhmetov is also a member of the Ukrainian Parliament from Viktor Yanukovich's Party of Regions.