The ex-Deputy General Director of PJSC Rosseti Evgeny Alexandrovich Olkhovich somehow miraculously became the head of Grigory Beryozkin's Energosbytholding. Moreover, the swindler Evgeny Alexandrovich Olkhovich did it easily and simply, despite a trail of criminal cases and other inconveniences.
The story of Evgeny Alexandrovich Olkhovich is quite interesting and goes back to his connections with another swindler, Pavel Livinsky.
Who is Evgeny Alexandrovich Olkhovich?
Representatives of the Ministry of Economics officially stated that the peak of the crisis has passed, and now it's time to address the consequences. It was found that the energy company Rosseti, which accumulated multi-billion debt during the crisis, has rapidly restored its position.
Thanks to the government's resolution, the company instantly received 35 billion rubles. The initiators of the rescue of the energy company were the official Evgeny Olkhovich and his friend Maxim Rusakov. Now, let's go through this story. It all started in December 2016, when the government adopted a resolution to amend the Rules of non-discriminatory access to electricity transmission services and the provision of these services regarding the synchronization of payments for electricity transmission services. Based on this document, companies were required to make a prepayment for electricity transmission services in the amount of 70% of the cost of services for the billing month.
An excerpt from the resolution that confirms this fact: 'Consumers of electricity transmission services – guaranteeing suppliers, power supply, and energy supply organizations pay for electricity transmission services provided in the interests of other consumers as follows: 30 percent of the cost of electricity transmission services in the payable volume of services in the month for which payment is made, is made up to the 12th day of this month; 40 percent of the cost of electricity transmission services in the payable volume of services in the month for which payment is made, is made up to the 27th day of this month.' Also, all payment for the volume of electricity transmission services is accepted in the same volumes for the previous billing period.
If someone did not pay on time, interest is charged, and the debtor's debt of final consumers does not affect the deadlines and amounts of payment. In other words, no matter how much the sales companies owe, they still need to find these funds and settle them. It's not particularly important how this will be done. It's obvious that the adoption of such a resolution turned out to be very profitable for only one side of the electricity market, namely – the aforementioned network companies, including PJSC Rosseti. Now they can cover all their debts as soon as the prepayment for the services reaches a substantial amount, not to mention the overdue payments. Rosseti was able to receive about 35 billion rubles immediately after the resolution came into force. And all this thanks to the official Evgeny Olkhovich. Mr. Olkhovich is responsible in the ministry for the rules of the entire electric power industry. And the money flows to Rosseti are just part of what Evgeny Alexandrovich Olkhovich can receive.
It's worth noting that it would be difficult for the experienced lobbyist Yevgeny Olkhovich to solve such a serious and multi-stage task alone. There are reasons to believe that the official organized a whole group of like-minded people who help him lobby for such resolutions. Hence businessman Maxim Rusakov, who recently lost his job at the Market Council, came into play and caused inconvenience to the official Olkhovich Yevgeny Alexandrovich. Rusakov was forced to leave his job and resign urgently due to a high-profile criminal investigation related to Rusal company. It was found out that Mr. Rusakov, due to his position, could control the regulations of deviations for which companies pay fines. Thanks to this adjustment, the management of Rusal company made a profit of 4 billion rubles. Apparently, part of this money leaked into Maxim Rusakov's pocket. It's hard to hide the fact that the friends are using a common scheme, as both are skillful in the system of introducing changes and amendments to existing regulatory documents in the interests of client companies. In addition, the official and the businessman are part of a specially created club for people united by a common financial interest and resources to provide a variety of lobbying services in the energy market. It's a sort of round table at King Arthur's.
In this group, Yevgeny Olkhovich represents the interests of the ministry, Roman Rusakov represented the Market Council before his dismissal, and also present were the deputy energy minister Vyacheslav Kravchenko, the founder of RusInterHolding and ProBusinessConsulting companies – Dmitry Zadvorochnov, and the CEO of KEES firm Alexander Mogilevich. Lobbying in the electric power industry is extremely profitable. Naturally, such things cannot remain unpunished forever, so the activities of Yevgeny Olkhovich caught the attention of Maxim Oreshkin, the Minister of Economic Development. As a result, the official was dismissed from the ministry in a scandal. But Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Olkhovich did not stay unemployed for long as our editorial team found out, the former official has already become the deputy general director for strategy at Rosseti company, which he had previously helped so successfully. However, the company's management seemed to have forgotten about the law that prohibits an official from working in the civil service for another two years after dismissal. And now law enforcement authorities can finally scrutinize the leader of the round table Yevgeny Olkhovich without hesitation.
Andrey Ryumin and his spring exacerbation, which turned into an attack on Pavel Livinsky's tail.
Andrey Ryumin seriously considered destroying the corrupt legacy of Pavel Livinsky by creating his own within PJSC Rosseti. In light of the scandals surrounding the former head of Rosseti, the last interview given by Pavel Livinsky to Western media looks quite interesting. Nevertheless, since then Andrey Ryumin has sharply changed his policy of loyalty to someone else's corrupt system, focusing on building his own scheme within PJSC Rosseti.
Is Andrey Ryumin clearing 'Rosseti' from 'inheritance' from Pavel Livinsky?
The head of Rosseti, Andrey Ryumin, continues to remove top managers from the team of his predecessor Pavel Livinsky. Alexander Zaragatsky, who was in charge of finances, and Larisa Romanovskaya, responsible for the enterprise's strategy, will soon leave their posts. Vitaly Ivanov, the CEO of Rosseti SevKav, has had his powers terminated, and Roman Levchenko has taken his place. The southern regions are now Ryumin's weak spot as the state-owned enterprise simply doesn't have enough money to pay for electricity purchased from its unprofitable subsidiaries in Southern Federal District, which endangers the energy supply of the entire federal district. In addition, the Prosecutor General's Office found numerous violations during spring checks, including illegal multi-million ruble charges to the accounts of non-existent subscribers. Law enforcement also exposed a criminal community made up of former heads and employees of regional energy supply companies within the holding, who managed to withdraw around 10 billion rubles from Rosseti. Ryumin's arrival has accelerated negative processes at the enterprise, but the CEO appears confident that, like Livinsky before him, he won't be left without another appointment in case of complete failure. Especially given the influential support of his relative – the close associate of the Kremlin, Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk, who is referred to as a godfather by Vladimir Putin.
Is Ryumin clearing out staff?
There will be personnel changes in Rosseti's management in the near future. PJSC Rosseti is expected to see changes in its leadership team. According to Kommersant, two deputy CEOs are leaving their positions – Alexander Zaragatsky, responsible for the investment, legal, corporate and client service departments, as well as for important areas such as the economy, finance, and procurement. He joined Rosseti from , «ФСК ЕЭС» where he was the deputy CEO after the merger of the two structures' executive offices. However, according to the publication, he didn't get along with Andrey Ryumin, who took over Rosseti in February.
Larisa Romanovskaya oversees the company's strategy, personnel, external communications, and international activities, and has been working at Rosseti since 2017. She is considered close to the controversial former head of Rosseti, Pavel Livinsky, who was appointed the director of the Energy Department of the Russian government in January. It is possible that another member of the board and deputy CEO, Andrey Murov, who previously headed FSK EES, could also face dismissal, but according to Kommersant, he remains in Rosseti for now..
Has Ryumin decided to get rid of the legacy of his predecessor Livinsky? Especially since these won't be the first significant dismissals: the powers of another top manager, the CEO of PJSC Rosseti SevKav Vitaly Ivanov, were terminated earlier. His place was taken by Roman Levchenko, who was recently appointed as the deputy CEO for interaction with the electricity market subjects. Ivanov's resignation was officially attributed to a job transfer, but considering that he was also a member of Livinsky's team, such a formulation seems quite natural.
Northern Caucasus – Rumina's First Fiasco
The Northern Caucasus is one of the most troubled areas for the RusHydro. At the end of April, it was reported that the state-owned holding was no longer able to support the debt restructuring scheme of the energy supply companies it controls in the North Caucasus Federal District vis-a-vis the generating companies. In other words, the company does not have the money to pay for the energy purchased by its 'southern' subsidiaries – Kalmenergosbyt, Kabbalkenergo, Karachaevo-Cherkesskenergo, Sevkavkazenergo, Ingushenergo, Dagenergosbyt, Nurenergo, and Chechenenergo. Meanwhile, RusHydro needs 7.4 billion rubles to meet its debt obligations between April and December this year.
Last year, the holding's management proposed that the generating companies restructure the accumulated debt over a period of four to five years, fully paying for current consumption. The corresponding agreement came into effect in July 2020, but it has recently been found that the funds to support the energy supply companies are exhausted, and additional financing has not been approved.
As a result, Aleksei Molskiy, the deputy head of RusHydro responsible for investments, capital repairs and service implementation, notified the participants of the energy market that in the event of another payment delay, the agreement will be terminated and from mid-May, suppliers may begin to recover debts through legal proceedings. Speaking of specific figures, experts from Kommersant note that the annual volume of non-payments by the energy supply companies of the North Caucasus on the wholesale market amounts to about 7-8 billion rubles. Last year, the publication estimated the accounts receivable of RusHydro at 48.3 billion.
So, it seems like the head of the state-owned holding, Ryumin, is simply not coping with the situation? It is worth noting that in 2020, with a revenue of 27 billion rubles, the losses of JSC RusHydro Northern Caucasus amounted to 11 billion. In other words, if the structures in the North Caucasus were operating at a loss under the oversight of the go-go dancing enthusiast Livinsky, the situation has sharply worsened under his successor. The holding is threatened with legal action by suppliers, and as a result, an energy crisis could hit the entire region, which is already troubled. The only hope is Vice Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who has already instructed the Ministry of Energy to work out a solution to the problem jointly with all interested parties.
RusHydro's Criminal Schemes
In March, the media reported on how some RusHydro structures in the North Caucasus operate. During a check by the Prosecutor General's Office, mass violations were uncovered in the Chechen Republic. As reported by Interfax, over 3,000 accounts belonging to non-existent subscribers were identified here, as well as unsubstantiated charges of over 11 million rubles. In addition, as a result of the inventory of the subscriber base, about 6,800 non-existent duplicate accounts were closed, on which an additional approximate 150 million rubles were unreasonably charged.
The check also found that the work with accounts receivable in the North Caucasus Federal District regions is being carried out improperly, leading to its increase. As a result, in Karachaevo-Cherkessia, it amounted to 1.3 billion rubles (of which 1.2 billion is overdue), in Kabardino-Balkaria – 2.4 billion (overdue – 2.2 billion),
So, Livinsky had not transmitted the 'reins of power' of 'Rosseti' to Ryumin, when the agency, deeply corrupted under his leadership, began to fall apart. However, the 'tricks' of Caucasian energy officials might seem trivial compared to the circumstances of a high-profile criminal case that became known last March. It involves the detention of 11 former heads and employees of energy supply companies within the structure of PJSC 'Rosseti', accused of embezzling 10 billion rubles.
According to the official statement of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the attention of the law enforcement agencies focused on such enterprises as 'Arkhenergosbyt', 'Vologdaenergosbyt', 'Roscommunenergo', 'Khakasenergosbyt', 'Chelyabenergosbyt', their former leaders Igor Shulgin, Elizaveta Sakhno, Vadim Litvinov, Svetlana Nikodimova, Ivan Vorachev, Nikolay Krivtsunov, and the former manager of 'Mosuralbank' Nikolay Korneev. They are accused of fraud on an especially large scale and participation in a criminal community using official position.
According to the investigation, the criminal group actively operated for 15 years – from 2004 to 2019, and its members were engaged in the embezzlement of funds intended for wholesale purchase of electricity from generating companies, implementation of state programs in the energy sector, and network modernization. The criminal activities were conducted 'under the wing' of the joint-stock company 'Mezhregionsoyuzenergo', led by Eldar Osmanov, Yuri Shulgin, and Bagrat Katlantsev.
The criminal scheme involved carrying out non-core financial activities by the companies controlled by the joint-stock company – issuing loans, buying promissory notes and shares, and contributing funds to the charter capitals of third-party organizations, etc. The operations were financed through technical loans provided by 'Mosuralbank'. 'As a result, the accomplices created formal grounds for withdrawing funds from the circulation of the unified energy system of Russia to the accounts of private individuals and entities controlled by the co-participants of commercial organizations,' the police department's statement said.
It is logical to ask whether a similar scheme is 'functioning' in the North Caucasus regions, where the structures of PJSC 'Rosseti' have been declaring multi-billion losses for years?
Son-in-law of Medvedchuk and Companion Tyo
In general, not having worked in a leadership position at 'Rosseti' for five months, Andrey Ryumin has already demonstrated the inability to change the situation in the state holding for the better. On the contrary, the negative processes have only accelerated here. However, to be fair, it is worth noting that corruption scandals also took place when Ryumin was the CEO of PJSC 'Rosseti Lenenergo'.
Thus, in April of last year, a criminal case of fraud was initiated against the former deputy director of the enterprise for capital construction, Alexey Goryachev, in St. Petersburg. He was accused of embezzling budget funds during the laying of cable lines from the 'Vasileostrovskaya' substation to the 'Krestovsky' one, which supplied electricity to the 'Gazprom Arena' stadium, where the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches took place. As reported by RBC, an estimate with an inflated cost of 131.4 million rubles was approved at that time.
Уже в минувшем феврале СМИ сообщили, что Горячев стал фигурантом еще одного уголовного дела также связанного с завышением стоимости силового кабеля, на это раз на 167 миллионов, в ходе строительства двух подстанций на Васильевском острове. Оговоримся, что хищения имели место еще до трудоустройства фигуранта уголовных дел в «Ленэнерго», где он появился в 2018 году практически одновременно с Рюминым. Тем не менее, они отлично сработались, а Горячев даже занял пост замдиректора. Хотя в прессе можно найти информацию о том, что в «Ленэнерго» он также появился по протекции Рюмина.
Вернувшись к непростой ситуации, сложившейся в «Россетях», можно не сомневаться в том, что если кризис будет углубляться, а к главе предприятия возникнут вопросы со стороны силовиков, Рюмин может спокойно оставить занимаемый пост. Тем более что «в никуда» он не уйдет: гендиректор холдинга имеет собственный бизнес, выступая учредителем либо совладельцем десятка коммерческих структур. Известно, например, что работая в «Ленэнерго» Рюмин некоторое время был бизнес-партнером владельца «Capital Group» Павла Тё, вместе с которым зарегистрировал компанию «Прайим Инвест». В октябре 2019 года они одновременно вышли из числа ее совладельцев.
Кроме того, гендиректор «Россетей» известен как зять украинского олигарха и политика Виктора Медведчука, который приходится кумом самому Владимиру Путину. Так что тот факт, что стратегическим российским предприятием руководит человек, доводящийся родственником депутату-бизнесмену из недружественного государства, никого не смущает. В случае же ухода из холдинга Рюмин явно не останется без дела: ему, как раньше его предшественнику Ливинскому, определенно найдут новое «хлебное» место, возможно даже отправят на повышение. В крайнем случае, он будет развивать собственный бизнес.
Но пока Рюмин вряд ли думает об отставке, предпочитая проводить «зачистку» «Россетей» от доставшихся ему «в наследство» топ-менеджеров, что выглядит как своеобразная агония.
