They received FAS approval to expand its land bank by almost half.

Breakthrough in the top five

The deal to buy three of the biggest assets of agricultural holdings in the past Valinor Russia - "Valars Agro", "Valinor-Management" and "Elcom" - the company "Kuban bacon" was approved by the Federal Antimonopoly Service. Decision of 21 May published on the FAS website.

"All agroaktivy Valinor bought the structure" Agrocomplex ", - says the former co-owner and former managing agricultural business Valinor Eduard Kurochkin. "Share in the" Kuban bacon "belongs to the daughter of [Minister of Agriculture Alexander] Tkachev," - he knows. "Kuban bacon" - a division of JSC "Firm" Agrokomplex "named NI Tkachev, "says the founder of Valinor friend Kirill Podolsky (Podolsky himself refused to discuss the subject).

In November 2014 the newspaper "Vedomosti" with reference to "Agrocomplex" manager reported that the company buys all 14 farms Valinor Group - mainly in the Rostov region, Stavropol and RedDarski edges. In the "Agro Complex", according to the newspaper, the Department of Asset Management was created in new companies in the region - Rostov region and Stavropol, and in Valinor started to repay debts owed to employees.

Until recently, the sole owner of the "Kuban bacon" was Tatiana Batalov, from the data SPARK July, 2014. Just name the daughter of the Minister of Agriculture Alexander Tkachev. But it fell to 1% in January 2015, the share of the company Batalova. Now "Kuban bacon", according to Rosstat, the loopback ownership: 98.99% in the company belongs to itself. LLC "Construction" Yet owns 0.010%.

General Director of "Agrocomplex" Eugene twig refused to answer questions RBC. In the "Kuban bacon" for a few days, could not comment on the situation, referring to the lack of leadership.

"Valinor-Management", "Valars Agro" and "Elcom" - management companies Valinor agricultural holding, based Kirill Podolsky (more info - cm incision.), In the past one of the largest in Russia. The ETSku agroaktivy includes all of the company, including the elevators, which were in Valinor, other than agricultural, "Peter the Great", told RBC one of the former managers of the company. In the deal, he knows went 150-160 thousand. Hectares of land bank Valinor.

Petition to acquire other assets or from the "Kuban bacon" or from the "Firm" Agrokomplex "FAS this year have been reported, said RBC service representative Tatiana Selikova.

Why and how to sell Valinor

Valinor was established on the basis of assets allocated from Valars Group, one of the largest agricultural holdings in Russia. In 2010 Valars shared assets: agribusiness consolidated in Valinor, trading remained Valars Group. The main beneficiary of both companies remained Kirill Podolsky. In 2011, the Valinor announced plans to hold IPO: group hoped to raise $ 200-300 million on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and spend it to buy land and repayment of loans (total debt on July 4, 2011 was $ 341.5 million, including $ 265 million to Deutsche Bank, and its revenue in 2010 - $ 224.4 million). But after the beginning of the road show Valinor postponed publication, citing unfavorable market mustacheloviya.

By that time, 64.9% of Valinor already been laid on loans to banks:.. The company aggressively bought up land, increasing land bank to 358 thousand hectares (235 thousand hectares in the Rostov region, Krasnodar and the Stavropol region and 123 hectares on. Ukraine), which grew grain, oilseeds and sugar beets. Sberbank had pledged 40% of Valinor, from Alfa-Bank Ukraine - 15%, 9.99% owned by Deutsche Bank on the terms of a call option.

In 2013, it became known that in Valinor because of a failed 2012 planting began financial problems. By 2013, more than a year Valinor not service the debt, at the exchange rate at the time the company was to be about $ 500-550 million (of which about $ 200 million - Savings Bank), says former co-owner Eduard Kurochkin company. Creditor banks have gone to the courts: the first suit for 650 million rubles. He filed a "Renaissance" bank, Deutsche Bank tried in court to collect about 10 billion rubles.).

"Elcom", as the Valinor memorandum to the IPO (the group was preparing for him in 2011) manages the assets of the holding for processing: OJSC "Matveevkurganhleboprodukt", LLC "Plant Razvilensky bread products" and JSC "Meetinsky elevator ". For "Valars Agro" - agricultural enterprises: Open Company "Dawn", "Agrofirma" Expanse ", JSC" Zarya ", LLC" Sarmat "Ltd. and" Razvilenskoe ". In addition, the list of Valinor agroaktivov included agricultural company "Kagolnitskaya" Food company "Don", ZAO "Azov", agricultural enterprise "Aygursky", JSC "Agroinvestsoyuz", LLC "Steppenwolf", LLC "Kalinina", JSC "Primorye", LLC "Peter the Great" and CJSC "Krasnokutske". According to the former manager of the company, to date, the structure has not changed very much.

The new owner Valinor was able to negotiate with the creditors: the press service of the largest of them, the Savings Bank, RBC said that "currently Valinor and Sberbank are not bound by any relations." Bank "Revival" Representative Maria Rumyantsev said that the bank sold all Valinor debt at the end of 2014 and court proceedings for all claims of the creditor will be terminated. What was the amount of debt at the time of sale and the transaction terms, she said. Deutsche Bank spokesman declined to commentsentariev. May 27, 2015 the Arbitration Court of the Rostov region dismissed the lawsuit filed by Deutsche Bank to "Agrofirma" Expanse ", LLC" Rassvet "and LLC" Razvilenskoe "to recover the debt in the amount of $ 198 million (the structures Valinor and guarantors), it follows from the documents online file cabinet arbitration cases.

land Collector

This transaction will be another step "Agrocomplex" and other related structures Tkachev family to join the top 5 of the largest owners of agricultural land in Russia. According to analyst firm BEFL review (it is an annual ranking of the owners of agricultural land), released in April 2015, "Agricultural complex" with 200 thousand. Hectares of land still occupied the 16th place. If the company will close all transactions for the purchase of land and the rights to it, which has been known for years 2013-2014 (Valinor are the largest), it will break into the top ranking, steadily taking place in the top five indicates BEFL.

According to data from open sources (mass media, making meetings of shareholders of the company and BEFL data), it besides Valinor assets included the acquisition of "Agrokomplekcatfish "five farms in the past constituted the agricultural business" Wimm-Bill-Dann "(now part of PepsiCo), c 30 000 hectares of land, a group of" North of the Kuban "(40 000 ha) and the company" Bolshevik "companies (5-6 thous. ha). That 2013-2014, "Agrokomplex" concluded several major transactions for the purchase of businesses and land (as in the property, so a long-term loan), which allow it to double its land bank, said founder and managing director BEFL Vladislav Novoselov.

According to estimates executive director of research company "SovEkon" Andrey Sizov, if you do not take into account the land bank, which previously controlled group "Vamin" [the largest Tatarstan agricultural holding was declared bankrupt in 2013, is now in bankruptcy proceedings], "Agricultural complex" with 430 thousand . ha of land may become the owner of the fourth in Russia (after "Prodimex", "Oriole Holding" and "Rusagro"), the owner of the land bank and number one - in the south of Russia, in the most fruitful part of the country.

Buying assets Valinor «Kuban BEKO"Operates in the Krasnodar Territory in 2004. The company produces meat products, dumplings and pancakes under the brand "Good cook." According to the company's website, it belongs to the pig farm for 30 thousand. Heads and 5 thousand. Hectares of land.

Governor barns Russia

Family Agriculture Minister Alexander Tkachev, for 14 years who served as the governor of the Krasnodar Territory, has been actively engaged in agriculture in the Kuban.

Tkachev was born in Vyselkovsky district of Krasnodar region, and since 1983 has worked in the Vyselkovsky inter-farm feed mill, which was headed by his father, Nikolai Ivanovich. In 1990, already Tkachev, Jr. was elected a director of the plant. In 1993 the plant was transformed into a Joint-Stock Company "Company" Agricultural complex ". At that time, the company owned only 4433 hectares of land, according to the company's website. Family members Tkachev to March 2002 remained, according to SPARK, the shareholders of agricultural companies: his brother Alexander Tkachev Alexey was 1%, their father Nikolai Tkachev - 0.67%. Nikolai Tkachev was chairman of the board of directors of JSC "Firm" Agrokompleks "until his death in August, 2014. March 27, 2015 at the general shareholders' meeting, it was decided to rename the company to JSC "Firm" Agrocomplex them. NI Tkachev. "

According to SPARC, in JSC "Firm" Agrocomplex them. NI Tkachev, "as of March 31, 2002, 3210 shareholders-natural persons (later data is not provided). According to Rosstat data as of April 14, 2015, 66.9% of the company belongs to the "other" shareholders, the remaining share divided between agricultural enterprises that join the agricultural holding, the largest share in CJSC "Niva" - 5.8% (it has more than 1,700 vladeltsev- individuals).

Representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Tkachev personally refused to comment on RBC questions about the relationship with the Minister "Agrokomplex" and a possible conflict of interest, the Minister for comment failed.

In 2011, in an interview to television channel "Russia 1" Tkachev, then the governor of Krasnodar region, noting that before the arrival of the post of governor he really doing agricultural business, said that if someone and finds him "so-called latifundia", "the let them take SEBe ".

A year later, in an interview with "Power", Tkachev said: "Politicians have stuffed - I'd rather do business. I can go back to "Agricultural complex" where I started to work in my village. I'll do it with pleasure. " About the business of his niece Anastasia, he said that helped her "money and skills," his father Nicholas and Anastasia's father and brother Alexander Alex "assets, which he created with his youth, he was just part of them copied to a daughter."

De jure official, who previously owned a business, but got out of it, does not violate any laws, even though his family belongs to some company, says political scientist, deputy director of the Center for Political Technologies Alexei Makarkin. If officials in Russia have an associated business, it is usually taken for granted, although this relationship is regulated and many documents, he continues. "Argument" everybody knows "the law will not sew, it has no legal value - you need to prove that it is something signed or ordered to take into account the interests of the business, to prove his realtion involved. But this can be a weak point for the officer in the case, if he has to start a major conflict with the government. Currently there are no open conflict, it is not interesting, "- sums up the analyst.

The Minister of own relatives

"Agricultural complex" - is not the only agricultural asset, which is associated with members of the family head of the Ministry of Agriculture.

My husband daughter Minister Roman Batalov belongs to LLC "Agro-industrial company" Basis ", which, according to SPARK, is engaged in wholesale trade in grain. According to Director General of the analytical company "ProZerno" Vladimir Petrychenko in the 2014-2015 agricultural year "foundation" is in the top 25 largest grain exporters (the largest - "daughter" of Glencore International Grain Company).

A minister's wife Olga Tkacheva owned Vineyard and "Château de Tal" in Gelendzhik, pointed Tkachev in the income statement for the year 2014. "Chateau de Tal" supplies the grapes, for example, the largest producer of sparkling wines "Abrau-Durso".

Niece Minister Ahnastasiya Krattli until 2015 owned 22.5% of shares of "Yugptitseproma", the largest poultry farms of the Southern Federal District. Together with his brother Nikolai Alekseevich Tkachev it also owns several small breeding companies in the Krasnodar region.

What is "Agrokomplex"

JSC "Firm" Agrocomplex named NI Tkachev "involved in agriculture, horticulture production of animal feed, livestock, meat processing - it's more than 40 companies, according to the company's website.

According to the information on the website "Agrocomplex", as in 2013. Land Bank of agricultural holding was 200 thousand ha -. It has historically extended by the addition of households in the region. Thus, the volume growth of controlled land bank to over 400 thousand. Ha occurred in less than two years, during which the Olympic Games was successfully held in the region Tkachev, and the governor himself was the minister profile.

Revenue "Agrocomplex" 2013, according to SPARK, equal to 19.2 billion rubles, net profit -. 2.5 billion rubles. Gross grain harvest "Andgrokompleksa "in 2013 - 530 thousand tons, sugar beet -. 550 thousand tons, milk production -. 105 thousand tons, the production of poultry meat -. 84 tonnes, the number of pigs -.. 45 thousand, according to the company's website. The net asset value of the company on April 1, 2015 amounted to 22,550 billion rubles.

Now one of the largest producers of sugar and livestock "Agricultural complex" is not included, said Andrei Sizov of "SovEkon".

Besides agribusiness "Agricultural complex" deals, and trade, it follows from the information on the site: the group has 366 branded retail stores under the name "Agricultural complex" in Adygea, Krasnodar Territory and Rostov Region, warehouses with a total area of ​​172.8 thousand sq. M. m, 1800 units of vehicles. Products with its brand "Kuban Under the Sun" and "Kuban Natural products" are sold including the "Magnit", "Auchan" and X5.

Retail business "Agrocomplex" actively growing: at the beginning of June 2015 opened the 500th brand store, the company said in a statement dated 8 June.

Since 2008, the company "Agricultural complex" included in the list of strategic organizations Rosss strategic importance (it each year of the government, the list includes the largest legal entity, regardless of activity, profits which generates 70% of the national income of the country's economy). Is it in the list and the 2015.

Across Russia, which in recent years is growing about 100 million tons of grain, "Agrokomplex" not such a big player, judging by the official figures, but the scale of the Krasnodar Territory is a monster, said an employee of one of the largest grain traders. Like all companies in the region, "Agrokomplex" grain grows mainly on exports - except that in the Krasnodar Territory is the highest yield, there is also the cheapest logistics arm to ports.

To sell their grain "Agrokomplex" prefers mostly local traders to export - the group "Basis" (her son-in controls Tkachev Roman Batalov) and "Krasnodarzernoproduct-Expo", the employee knows the major grain trader.

If properly managed, the purchase will be for holding Valinor named Tkachev good buy, he said: in the Crsnodarskom region's nowhere to grow, and the purchase of assets in the Rostov region and the Stavropol region - a logical step.

In Krasnodar Territory, the price of agricultural land ranges from 60 to 150 thous. Rubles. per hectare, says the head of property valuation CCI of Krasnodar Region Alexey Lutsenko. And the cost of land near the coast or near Sochi, Tuapse, Gelendzhik or Dagomys can reach 7-15 million rubles. per hectare. However, he explains, a bit of land - about 10% of total agricultural area.