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Russia to Put Up For Sale Famous Vodka Brands
Russia’s Economic Development Ministry suggests putting up for sale famous vodka brands – Stolichnaya, Moskovskaya and Russkaya, which belong to the federal-run Soyuzplodoimport, RBC Daily reported with reference to some ministry’s document available to it. A successful bidder won’t get the right of ownership for the brands but will be authorized only to use them. At the same time, alcohol players are not very much agitated about the future tender – the brands are burdened with legal trials overseas and call for huge investments to regain the lost standing.
The federal-run Soyuzplodoimport was founded under the RF government’s ruling of 2001. The root cause of the Economic Development Ministry’s proposal to sell the brands is the drop in capitalization, which shed from $900 million to $250 million during four years of Soyuzplodoimport’s management. The sales decline from 4 million decaliters to 200,000 decaliters stripped the excise receipts of the budget of $350 million. In addition, Soyuzplodoimport lost 13 of 16 key trials held abroad and targeted at restoring Russia’s ownership for the brands.
As a way out, the ministry suggests auctioning Stolichnaya, Moskovskaya and Russkaya “for vesting with the right to use and dispose of the brands (but with no cession of rights). A successful bidder will enter into a respective agreement with the government, so the latter will retain ownership in any case.
Soyuzplodoimport refused to comment. “We don’t comment on internal documents of Economic Development Ministry,” Soyuzplodoimport General Director Vladimir Loginov told RBC Daily. In the Agriculture Ministry, to which Soyuzplodoimport is subordinate, they have heard nothing about the initiative.
The ministry’s intention failed to rattle S.P.I. that challenges Russia’s rights for the brands and is their owner overseas. “We think the rights for these brands in Russia will go back to us sooner or later, but not by such means,” S.P.I. President Andrey Skurikhin specified, adding no tender would prevent them from regaining the brands should the company be sustained by the Strasbourg Court.
www.kommersant.com
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Photo: Vasily Deryugin