Pavel Livinsky will throw bad networks to the state

Rosseti Holding wants to transfer unprofitable assets to the state balance.
01.11.2019
Kommersant
Origin source
Rosseti are considering possible options for allocating distressed assets. The main scenario is transferring them to individual state-owned companies, which Rosseti will be able to take over. According to analysts, the separation of only unprofitable Kubanenergo and IDGC of the North Caucasus will be able to increase the capitalization of Rossetei by 30-40 billion rubles. But the minority shareholders of Rossetei are worried: they believe that the holding itself should be responsible for improving the financial condition of subsidiaries, otherwise they should be transferred to private investors.

Rosseti is considering the possibility of withdrawing unprofitable assets from its structure and transferring them to the balance of the state, Kommersant interlocutors familiar with the proposal said. We can talk about unprofitable branches within the framework of inter-regional distribution network companies (IDGCs). Subsequently, Rosseti is ready to take these assets into management.

The scheme is veiledly described in the draft strategy of the holding until 2030, submitted to the Ministry of Energy.

The company writes about the need to change the mechanism of financial support for troubled subsidiaries, proposing to do so "using state financing within the framework of schemes that do not negatively affect the shareholder value of the company." According to Kommersant’s data, inside the Rosseti this mechanism is called “hospitals”.

According to the results of 2018, IDGC of the North Caucasus (including problematic energy sales) turned out to be at a loss under IFRS - 7.9 billion rubles. In the first half of 2019, a loss of 230 million rubles. received "Kubanenergo". IDGC of Siberia seriously worsened its financials - profits fell almost six times, to 405.5 million rubles, and IDGC of the Urals - 6.3 times, to 640.8 million rubles. Each MRSK includes several branches, the reports of which Rosseti did not disclose, but chronically troubled assets include, for example, Tyvaenergo, which is part of IDGC of Siberia.

In recent years, Rosseti has been solving the problems of loss-making of individual structures through the redistribution of dividends from successful holding companies in their favor.

At the end of 2018, distressed assets received 12 billion rubles through additional issues. from 25 billion rubles. dividends received by Rosseti from subsidiaries. The draft strategy of Rosseti says that the current options for supporting troubled companies "lead to a decrease in the volume of shares in free float, a reduction in the amount of dividends of Rosseti and negatively affect the investment attractiveness of the holding."

Alexander Branis, Director of Prosperity Capital Management (one of IDGC minority shareholders), notes that the goal of Rossetey’s management is to turn unprofitable branches into profitable ones and not give them away to the state for free, and then take them into management. “If the holding cannot bring individual branches into profit, it would be logical to attract private investors,” adds another minority shareholder.

Alexander Shevchuk, executive director of the Association of Professional Investors (a member of IDGC’s boards of directors), said that independent directors of IDGCs of the South suggested allocating problem branches in early summer when an idea came up when discussing a loss-making additional issue of 7 billion rubles for Rosseti. It was proposed to separate the Kalmenergo branch through the merger with the company completely controlled by Rosseti. This would save up to 3 billion rubles, but Rosseti refused to discuss the idea, referring to the directives that they themselves prepared, he says: “So, the management took note of the proposals of independent directors, interpreting them in their own way. They will spend money on recapitalization with losses, and then the branch will allocate it, giving it to the state. First, the interests of minority shareholders are infringed, and then the state. ”

The Ministry of Energy “Kommersant” said that such a formulation in the draft strategy “Rossetei” does not contain. The Ministry of Economy and Rossetiakh did not respond, Kommersant sent the request to the Ministry of Energy to the Ministry of Energy.

Vladimir Sklyar from VTB Capital notes that the idea of ​​packing bad assets into a separate company in the energy sector is not new. But such initiatives always ended in the same way - state-owned companies continued to bear the burden of this social burden due to cash flows from more successful parts of the business. According to him, only with the disposal of Kubanenergo and IDGC of the North Caucasus, taking into account the semi-annual results, the capitalization of Rosseti could grow by 30-40 billion rubles.

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