VEB.RF and State Company Russian Highways Create Investment Platform for Support of Public-Private Partnership Projects
VEB.RF and the State Company Russian Highways create an investment platform for support of public-private partnership projects.
The agreement on the platform was signed by VEB.RF’s Deputy Chairman and InfraVEB’s CEO Yuriy Korsun and Avtodor-Invest’s Chairman of the Board Pavel Seleznyov. The signing ceremony took place at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The ceremony was attended by Russian Highways’ Chairman of the Management Board Vyacheslav Petushenko.
“Finding new efficient financing mechanisms for the transportation industry never has been more relevant than today. On the one hand, these mechanisms would substitute the state funds, from the other hand, they would help to overcome financial hurdles of the PPP investments market. Today the parties are reviewing certain projects, which will be prepared and offered to investors. If VEB.RF participates in financing of such projects, InfraVEB may offer equity financing to a borrower subject to the results of the finance structuring,” Yuri Korsun said.
“The investment platform will make it possible to raise financing at transportation PPP projects’ front-end planning stage. Implemented projects will break the existing infrastructure barriers and have a positive impact on the Russia’s social and economic development. At the same time this partnership does not rule out participation in projects in other tertiary industries,” Pavel Seleznyov said.
VEB.RF, Gazprombank and Perspective Technologies Development Center (PTDC) Sign Loan Agreement to Finance Marking and Labelling System
Today VEB.RF, Gazprombank, and Perspective Technologies Development Center Operator, subsidiary of PTDC, signed heads of a loan agreement to finance a project aimed at developing a national digital goods marking, labelling and traceability system during the Saint Petersburg Economic Forum.
The heads of agreement were signed by Nikolay Tsekhomsky, VEB.RF’s First Deputy Chairman and Member of the Management Board, Alexey Belous, Gazprombank’s Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, and Mikhail Dubin, Perspective Technologies Development Center’s Chairman of the Board.
The project is implemented under Federal Law No. 224-FZ “On Public-Private Partnership”. The project will be financed via a syndicated loan in line with the rules of the Project Financing Factory (PFF). The total amount of facilities granted by the syndicate is up to RUB24.2bn, including VEB.RF and Gazprombank commitments in the amount up to RUB8.7bn and RUB15.5bn respectively.
“We are witnessing a significant market’s interest in the Project Financing Factory. The Marking, Labelling and Traceability System will become the first digital technologies and platform services project financed via VEB.RF syndicate with Gazprombank through the PFF’s mechanism,” said Nikolay Tsekhomsky.
“A future Marking, Labelling and Traceability System will make it possible to control commodity markets and ensure protection of consumers’ rights to the fullest extent. The public-private partnership mechanism will make it possible to ensure the most efficient use of public funds invested into the system,” Alexey Belous, Gazprombank’s Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, commented.
“The project is a public-private partnership financed by PTDC’s shareholders; in this format the government can reach the goals without spending public funds; the system will be implemented faster; the responsibility will be vested into a single entity. At the same time the government keeps all the control functions. The cooperation with VEB.RF and Gazprombank enhances the project’s financial efficiency,” Mikhail Dubin, Perspective Technologies Development Center’s Chairman of the Board, said.
Russia intends to implement an integrated Marking, Labelling and Traceability System by 2024. The system will cover a wide range of goods. Today the agreement on the public-private partnership features 13 groups of goods: furs, dairy products, tobacco products, pharmaceuticals, perfume and eau de toilette, tires, five categories of consumer goods, shoes, photo cameras and flash equipment.
About PTDC:
The Perspective Technologies Development Center was created for the implementation of digital economy large scale projects. PTDC provides expertise and technological infrastructure for these projects. PTDC Operator, a subsidiary of the Center, was designated as the operator of the Federal Information System for Monitoring of Trade of Goods subject to Mandatory Marking and Labelling (Government Resolution No. 620-r). PTDC is developing the Russian National Integrated Digital Goods Marking, Labelling and Traceability System. Honest Quality Mark System will bring transparency to the commodity markets and create a comprehensive system for goods quality and authenticity control. This technology efficiently counters illegal goods, protects consumers and honest businesses. PTDC also participates in the development of the EEC’s supranational digital platform, organizes manufacturing of marking and labelling equipment, develops the National Goods Catalogue, manufactures fiscal memory devices for on-line cash registers.