Kstovo

Kstovo (Russian: Кстово) is a town and the administrative center of Kstovsky District in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Volga River, 22 kilometers (14 mi) southeast of Nizhny Novgorod, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 66,657 (2010 census); 66,944 (2002 census); 62,414 (1989 Soviet census).

The place name is said to have originated from the Mordvin ksty, meaning "strawberry".

The village of Kstovo was mentioned as early as the 14th century.^{[citation needed]}

With the construction of Novogorkovsky Oil Refinery, which started operations on August 18, 1958,) a new settlement was built a few kilometers to the northwest of the old village of Kstovo, on the high ground between the Volga and the Kudma Rivers. Since then, the western part of the town centered on the original village of Kstovo, and, still quite rural in character, has been commonly referred to as the Old Kstovo (Staroye Kstovo), while the newer eastern part, built in the 1950s and still expanding, is known as the New Kstovo (Novoye Kstovo). As the New Kstovo expanded over the years, it completely or partially displaced several smaller villages.

Kstovo was granted urban-type settlement status in 1954 and town status in 1957.^{[citation needed]}

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Kstovo serves as the administrative center of Kstovsky District. As an administrative division, it is incorporated within Kstovsky District as the town of district significance of Kstovo. As a municipal division, the town of district significance of Kstovo is incorporated within Kstovsky Municipal District as Kstovo Urban Settlement.

Kstovo's main industrial zone is located south of the town, on the southern side of the Kudma River. It is centered on the petrochemical plants of Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez (formerly NORSI-Oil and Novogorkovsky Oil Refinery), a subsidiary of Lukoil, which is the town's main employer, and, historically, the reason for the town's existence.

The "BVK" plant, which started operation in 1973 and was closed in 2003, used n-paraffins (produced by the oil refinery nearby) as feed for yeast, in order to produce the so-called "protein and vitamin concentrate" (single-cell protein) for use as animal food. The facility was originally run by the Soviet Ministry of Microbiological Industry. As of c. 1990, it produced some 300,000 tons of its product per year. The facility also produced certain pharmaceutical products, such as Coenzyme Q10 (Ubiquinone-10), which is used as a dietary supplement.