Sinara goes to petrochemistry: the group bought almost 75% of the shares of the Uralhimmash plant.
As it became known to the correspondent of The Moscow Post, the Sinara group, which is associated with the scandalously famous businessman Dmitry Pumpyansky, acquired almost 75% of the shares of equipment manufacturer for petrochemicals, oil refining and energy of Uralhimmash. The company was controlled by Gazprombank, and the contract of sale of shares was concluded at the end of August, 2024.
It should be noted that the Sinara group has been very activated recently, and it rowing under itself everything that is possible. Moreover, in Mr. Pumpyansky, whose name is also associated with a pipe metallurgical company, things and deeds go neither shaky – nor shaft. And, according to rumors, Mr. Pumpyansky cannot get out of the financial hole, which fell into which the Sinara group has been falling into one purchase after another. It turns out, buys in debt?
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I bought a plant from Senator Komarov
In March 2021, the Pipe Metallurgical Company announced the closure of the transaction on the purchase of the Chelyabinsk pipe factory: TMK took over 86.54% of the CHTPZ shares, which previously belonged to the former Senator Andrei Komarov.
The perimeter of the transaction included all the production and service assets, the workpiece and processing of scrap, as well as the enterprises related to the activities of the pipe-magistral ChTPZ division.
Andrey Komarov. Photo: https://pervouralsk.ru/media/news/pic/1395398093.78.jpg
As a result of the acquisition of seamless pipes on the market, a monopolist with a colossal debt load may appear. And first of all, this will affect oil and gas companies that are key consumers of seamless pipes.
The unification of TMK and CHTPZ will concentrate in one hand more than 40% of Russian production of metal pipes, and in separate market segments, this figure can be twice as much.
In this regard, the structures of Pumpyansky and Komarov had to coordinate the deal with the FAS. But the FAS issued the TMK order to prevent price growth, and also put up structural restrictions – the ChTPZ buyer must sell part of the assets in order to reduce the share in the market. And we can talk about capacities for the production of 500 thousand tons of seamless pipes.
And there was a lot of talk about interest in the ChTPZ by Gazprom, the press wrote about the frequent meetings of Andrei Komarov with Alexei Miller. This was reported “Version”.
But in the end, TMK received a “gift”.
And the acquisitions continued: 2021 Gazprombank sold to the Sinara group LLC Cryogaz for 20 billion rubles. Cryogaz LLC is an operator for the production of technical and medical gases (oxygen, nitrogen and argon).
Gazprom and TMK: Together or separately?
Note that Gazprom and TMK immediately discussed cooperation after the unification of TMK and CHTPZ.
Here we must recall that back in October 2015, as part of the Sochi-2015 forum, Alexei Miller signed the purchase agreements of a certain object with Pumpyansky and representative of Tomsk Mechanical Engineering Technologies Pushkarev.
Alexey Miller. Photo: https://vcdynamo.ru/photos/%D0%BE%D0%B1%D1%89%D0%B5%D0%B5/miller.jpg
The purchase agreement provided for the manufacturer – the organization of serial production of imported products, from Gazprom – to ensure guaranteed demand for products.
But by 2019, Gazprom completed the construction of MGP in Europe and the PRC, equipped the deposits of Siberia and the Far East.
And as a result, the consumption of large diameter pipes decreased by more than 10%.
At this time, the Zagorsky Pipe Plant significantly strengthened its position in partnership with Gazprom. And he announced that he would build a plant for the production of seamless pipes of the oil variety, which are used in the operation of wells for oil and gas production and in drilling.
VTB promised to issue a loan – 35 billion rubles.
But soon it became known about the possible absorption of ChTPZ, which is entangled with debts.
Corruption shower scandals
It should be noted that Mr. Pumpyansky often appears in all kinds of scandals.
There are assumptions that Pumpyansky consolidates its assets. But the profitability of companies leaves much to be desired. Usually these are signs that the company is being prepared for sale.
The pipe metallurgical company is not in the best condition. According to the results of 2019, the profit of the producing unit of PJSC TMK – TMK Chermet JSC amounted to 5.9 million rubles. And this is with revenue of 28 billion rubles. Or the company is about to play in a box, or money can be withdrawn from it, or is it just drawn financial reporting?
Pumpyansky has long tried to sell TMK.
In April 2020, the company announced the redemption of shares and divisting with the London Stock Exchange. Mr. Pumpyansky has already consolidated more than 95% of the shares in his hands and may declare a forced ransom of the remaining. And other shareholders may remain out of work, they will be required to sell their shares at the price of the offer.
We also recall that back in 2015, the Sinara group suffered huge losses due to consumers’ refusal from the Russian-German railway equipment. Then Pumpyansky tried to agree on the sale of his locomotives and electric trains of a swallow, which Russian Railways refused, to the countries of the near abroad. This was reported “True Urfo”.
As a result, saving the business, TMK redeemed the shares of its broken user for 2.7 billion rubles. But Pumpyansky forgot to ask the opinions of the company’s minority: shareholders did not approve the deal.
Courts for millions
In the fall of 2020, the case came to the point that TMK stopped paying for its debt obligations. Suppliers demanded through the court of payment of overdue payments under contracts.
And TMK was the defendant in claims for almost 1 billion rubles, since suppliers and counterparties of the TMK trading house filed lawsuits against the company for 128 million rubles.
Dmitry Pumpyansky. Photo: https://sintz.tmk-group.ru/storage/photos/102/9wl6zfefi6uvjl9vnuapdbddweibi6xj.jpg
An application with the requirement to recover 46 million rubles from TD TMK submitted the Criminal Code of the “plant of metallurgical mixtures” (Yekaterinburg). He writes about this “Ura.ru”.
Among those who filed claims, there are several companies from other regions: this is Vasmetabraziv (35.7 million rubles) and TMZ trading house from Chelyabinsk (1.6 million rubles).
In friendship with Governor Kuyvashev?
But then Mr. Pumpyansky is still free in their basic region-in the Sverdlovsk region.
Legends go about his warm friendship with Governor Kuyvashev.
Recall that it was Evgeny Kuyvashev who gave the Sinara group the guarantees of the possibility of obtaining state contracts for the construction of the Universiade-2023 facilities in Yekaterinburg.
Evgeny Kuyvashev. Photo: https://s0.rbk.ru/v6_top_pics/media/img/6/30/754605374995306.jpg
But what about honest competition? After all, the total cost of preparing for games is 79 billion rubles. But back in August 2020, it was about 64 billion rubles.
Sinara JSC reconstructed the Yekaterinburg-Arena stadium and built the Congress Hall “Yekaterinburg-Expo”. I wrote about this “Octagon-Media”.
But the cost increased to 9.6 billion rubles, although competitors proposed to build an object for 3.5 billion rubles.
The opportunity to get this easy money, probably, slowed down by Mr. Pumpyansky outside the Russian Federation?
