Jade dylacha Rostec. The Stone Guest: why Vitaly Maschitsky is helping Rostec develop mineral mining. Who is Vahan Gevorkyan

26.12.2016 Extraction and sale of Buryat jade/Rostec

Alexander Voronkov never sought to “make money” from jade. A lawyer by training, he graduated from Irkutsk State University. He worked in government agencies and then succeeded in the forestry and construction business. But when the leadership of the Rostec state corporation received an offer to head the Trans-Baikal Mining Enterprise (ZGRP), he agreed to take on a new business. And the motives for choosing his candidacy are quite obvious. A lawyer with experience as a successful entrepreneur was needed for the position of General Director, so that the activities of the new enterprise, which was created as a locomotive for the decriminalization of the jade industry, would combine profit making with strict compliance with the law

Our conversation with Alexander Voronkov began with how the majority of the population’s ideas about jade correspond to reality

“Society has developed peculiar myths based on rumors and not very deep publications in the media,” Alexander Sergeevich is sure. Myth one: jade is very easy to mine, it literally lies under your feet. Drive the excavator and load it into the dump truck. What about loading jade, what about money... This is not so. Industrial production requires a full range of expensive works: geological exploration, stripping, blasting, sorting, loading, reclamation. After Dylacha, just to bring the quarry into compliance with technical and safety standards, it was necessary to move 900 thousand cubic meters of rock! Plus the design and maintenance of a rotational camp. All this in the conditions of the northern taiga, where organizing the delivery of fuel, equipment, components, and food is not easy and is not cheap. Mining alluvial jade in river beds is easier. But you need to understand that there is also not just a group of people walking around looking for jade. The rock is scooped out of the riverbed by excavators and then sorted. Imagine what happens to the river! I saw the consequences of the work of such “diggers”; it is a terrible sight and huge environmental damage. We strive to comply with all requirements, including environmental ones.

– But the high price of jade fully justifies all the efforts and costs?

– Price is another myth about jade. Particularly valuable specimens are not found very often. Over the course of a year, I saw one such stone, weighing about eight kilograms, valued at 1.5 thousand dollars. The price is dictated by demand. And jade is not an essential commodity. More like a luxury item. In the context of the crisis, which, in one way or another, affected all major economies, the demand for jade in China decreased. The anti-corruption campaign in this country also played a role, where jade and jade products were often used as gifts to officials.

– Among the reasons for the decline in demand for jade, some experts cite market oversaturation, which is associated with the activities of the ZGRP.

- Let's figure it out. Legal jade mining has actually increased in the past two years. This is the result of the decriminalization of the industry, the general efforts of government authorities, law enforcement agencies, customs, and subsoil users. But I don’t think the supply of jade on the market has increased that much. Rather, what had previously gone into shadow circulation began to be mined and sold officially. The practice of jade mining at the largest Kavoktinskoye deposit has changed. Previously, Dylacha extracted only high-quality jade. We extract the entire volume of mineral resources, as required by law and the terms of the license agreement. This also affects the overall production rate. But it is high-quality jade that sells well, accounting for an average of 12–13 percent of the total production volume. The rest needs enrichment. It needs to be cut, removing everything unnecessary and leaving what can be sold. This is done by our subcontractors - the Oriental Way factory. From what previously remained in the ground, in the taiga, they make a marketable product. This is a fundamentally new, truly economic approach to the extraction and processing of jade.

– Many today are asking the question: did Buryatia win or lose as a result of the fact that ZGRP came to replace Dylache?

- Here are the numbers. The maximum amount of mineral extraction tax (MET) was paid by Dylachi in 2010 - 15.9 million rubles. In 2015, ZGRP paid mineral extraction tax in the amount of 86.7 million rubles. The average monthly salary at our enterprise in 2014 was 66,376 rubles, in 2015 – 76,525 rubles, and as of October 1 of the outgoing year – 89,000 rubles. In the 2016 mining season, 171 people worked at ZGRP. Everyone receives an official salary, no “envelopes”. Accordingly, insurance contributions to the Social Insurance Fund, Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund and Pension Fund in 2015 exceeded 38 million rubles, and for nine months of this year - 30 million rubles. In total, in 2015, ZGRP transferred more than 128 million rubles to budgets of all levels, and over nine months of 2016 - over 90 million rubles. “Dylacha” had the largest amount of taxes amounting to 65 million rubles. Draw your own conclusions.

– What about the profit of ZGRP?

– Huge investments have been made in the development of the jade industry in Buryatia. As I already said, the quarry at Kavokta had to be put in order, the rotation camp was rebuilt, modern heavy machinery and production equipment were purchased. The total amount of investments exceeded two billion rubles. Therefore, we received our first profit in 2015. It covered the costs associated with the establishment of the enterprise. At the end of the outgoing year, we expect the first taxable profit, from which contributions to the budget will be made. This is a significant milestone for us - we are starting to work to the advantage of ourselves and Buryatia. After all, we purposefully “registered” the GRRP in the republic. The vast majority of our employees are residents of Buryatia.

– ZGRP invests significant funds in geological exploration. Were you able to ensure an increase in the balance reserves of jade? How long will they last?

– We invested more than 150 million rubles in geological exploration. This is not operational exploration, but a complete and multi-stage complex of search operations. From the development of a project for geological study of a subsoil site and search routes to the creation of an environmental monitoring project. Field surveys are followed by desk checks of their results. More than 900 tons of new jade reserves were added to the state balance sheet. Together with previously explored reserves, it will be enough for several years. But this is only the first, intermediate result. It takes two to three years from the start of surveys to the approval of balance reserves. The process is progressive and continuous, ensuring a confident future for the jade industry in Buryatia.

– Does ZGRP intend to cooperate with small and medium-sized businesses in Buryatia?

– We have been actively cooperating since the very beginning of our activities. We purchase materials, food, and everything necessary for the normal life of workers from enterprises of the republic. Our delivery partners are all local. Last year we carried out cargo transportation alone for 65 million rubles, and the transport companies of Buryatia received these funds from us in full. ZGRP only mines jade, and all our contracts are with enterprises in Buryatia, which pay taxes to the treasury of the republic. I can confidently say that the work of our enterprise has a multiplier effect on the economy of the region.

– Is there, in your opinion, the possibility and meaning of organizing a free supply of jade? Let's imagine this situation. A law-abiding citizen, fisherman or hunter, discovered a pellet or block of jade. What should he do? Throw a valuable stone in the taiga or hand it over to a licensed subsoil user?

– I have already said that jade, contrary to popular beliefs about it, does not just lie under your feet. Its search by a “law-abiding citizen” can result in negative consequences in the form of destruction of river beds or banal theft on the site of one subsoil user for the purpose of renting it to another. There are many “little things” in which, as we know, the devil lies. These are, first of all, tax issues. A taiga dweller will not register as an individual entrepreneur and take on the burden of annual payments in order to hand over one stone. It is also unprofitable for the subsoil user to act as a tax agent for him. Planning is important in the work of any enterprise. How much jade the free laborers will hand over during the season (tons or nothing), you can’t tell from the coffee grounds. There is no unified system for grading jade. With gold everything is clear, but here each stone is assessed individually. The taiga man brought it and demands one amount, and the expert names another. So what then? Take it by force, because according to the law, the jade still belongs to the licensed subsoil user? This is a very controversial, socially risky topic. Of course, it is possible to talk about free income in the jade industry, but in a practical sense it is clearly premature. The main thing now is to change the attitude of a certain part of the local population towards jade, which has been formed over the years, as an object of illegal mining and enrichment.

- Do they steal?

- No, they don’t steal from us now. I speak with full responsibility. This became possible thanks to the efforts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Buryatia. Including the opening of posts at large fields. Without the police, it would be impossible to stop the thefts. No private security company can compare to professionals in police uniform.

– Is ZGRP an enterprise created exclusively for jade, or are there plans to extract other minerals?

– The strategic task of ZGRP is to be a catalyst for the civilized development of the jade industry. Both legally and technologically. Perhaps, as the company develops, other areas of activity will appear. While they are not discussed, the task must be completed.

– Why did Rostec reduce its share in the capital of ZGRP? Will the state corporation continue to participate in its activities or will it completely leave the jade business?

– Rostec’s mission was to give impetus to the decriminalization and development of the jade industry by combining the efforts of the authorities, law enforcement agencies and subsoil users. Without the participation of the state corporation, resolving many issues at the state level would simply be impossible. As for Rostec and ZGRP. For further development of the enterprise, it is necessary to attract large investments. But these should not be government injections, especially in today’s conditions. Private investment is needed, and the state corporation has created the conditions for a large private investor to come into the business. This is a normal economic process and a competent management decision.

– After discussions in the People’s Khural of Buryatia about the problems of the jade industry, did you get the impression that its potential, in terms of filling the budget of Buryatia, was greatly overestimated in previous years?

– The myth about the endless flow of “jade dollars” has been dispelled. That's true. The real problems of the industry and the search for practical solutions came to the fore. I think that's good. It is, to put it mildly, unreasonable to count on the fact that one industry will support an entire region. Even in the oil and gas storehouses of Russia this is not the case. The economy of any region, including Buryatia, must develop harmoniously. The jade industry is only part of this “orchestra”, and I am confident that it will play harmoniously and significantly in it. We are working for this. – Thank you for the conversation. Artem Samsonov, “Number One”.

Did the general director of Prominvest Management Company Boris Savelyev steal 70 million rubles? They were allocated to clarify an application that did not need it. Was businessman Vahan Gevorkyan behind Savelyev?

Did the general director of Prominvest Management Company Boris Savelyev steal 70 million rubles? They were allocated to clarify an application that did not need it. Was businessman Vahan Gevorkyan behind Savelyev?

Boris Savelyev, general director of Prominvest Management Company, was charged with embezzlement in the amount of 70 million rubles. This was reported by a correspondent for The Moscow Post. The money was allocated to clarify the application to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf to expand the territory of the Russian Federation in the Arctic by 1.2 million square meters. km.

Submitted in 2015, the application did not require any clarification. Considering that the case file contains documents containing state secrets, the case may be classified as a state crime. Could the businessman behind Savelyev, Vahan Gevorkyan, be blamed for this?

Gevorkyan is apparently a gambler, because he owns the Stoloto lottery, which is a monopolist on the Russian market - 90% belongs to it. And the lottery itself belongs to TK Center JSC, the founder of which is Forb CJSC Vahan Gevorkyan. How did he manage to grab such a tidbit of Russian “scam”? Why would Gevorkyan have such happiness?

In 2012, two mysterious lottery transactions occurred in the gaming market. An unknown Toksana Holding bought it from Sberbank for 1.9 billion rubles. “Sportloto”, and the unknown company “Nero” CJSC entered into an agreement with the Ministry of Sports to hold “Gosloto” until 2020. The only owner of “Nero” was “Forb”.

It was in 2012 that Vitaly Mutko, who is now the Deputy Prime Minister in charge of construction, became the Minister of Sports. The organizers of lotteries in Russia are the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Sports. In 2012, the position of Minister of Finance was held by Anton Siluanov, who is now also Deputy Prime Minister. Is the entire lottery business in the country really supervised by two deputy prime ministers? But what relation can Vahan Gevorkyan have to them?

Rumor has it that the beneficiary of the lottery companies was Armen Sarkisyan, married to the daughter of former Moscow vice-mayor Joseph Ordzhonikidze, who until 2007 oversaw the gambling and hotel business in Moscow. Ordzhonikidze worked in the government since 1990. Could he have been connected with criminal structures at that troubled time? Is it possible that Vahan Gevorkyan is one of their representatives?

In 2013, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov ordered the development of a new law banning private lotteries, which was supposed to come into force in 2014. The reasoning noted that the lottery market in Russia was wild and criminalized. Instead of an income of 10 billion rubles. the budget received 1 billion rubles. I wonder how much Igor Shuvalov could get from the gambling business tycoons for clearing the market? And does Shuvalov have anything to do with him now?

Igor Shuvalov can “protect” the gambling business in Russia?

In 2016, the created JSC State Sports Lotteries already earned 22.9 billion rubles. versus RUB 3.8 billion in 2013. This company was the largest operator of state lotteries. Sportloto earned 194 billion rubles in 2016. And all the lotteries were distributed by the Stoloto trading house, which earned 10.4 billion rubles in the same year. It was renamed in May of this year to JSC TK Center. All three companies are located at the same address - in Avilon Plaza. And they are allegedly controlled by Armen Sarkesyan. However, they all belong to Forb CJSC.

So who is the real owner of the gambling business in Russia, who runs state lotteries? It is possible that Armen Sarkesyan is just a screen, and the real owners may be representatives of criminal structures. This is, of course, difficult to prove. However, for example, it is no secret that in America the gambling business has always been run by the mafia. Why should it be different in Russia?

In 2016 alone, lotteries brought in more than 30 billion rubles. per year. I wonder how many of them went to the Ministry of Transport and Economics? And could Igor Shuvalov, who at that time apparently oversaw the gambling business, have some kind of share? And how can we call the organizers of a business in which the interests of government officials and possibly representatives of the criminal world could be intertwined?

If we assume Vahan Gevorkyan’s connection with high-ranking officials, then the story of the clarification of the application appears in a completely different light. Perhaps one of the officials gave Gevorkyan a tip on this topic. Like, you can make 70 million rubles from scratch. The application did not need any clarification. Gevorkyan himself did not show off, but he left traces of his connection with Saveyev. And if investigators are interested in this story, they will easily find them.

The Prominvest Management Company was liquidated on April 20, and the Gazinvest Management Company on July 9. Someone was clearly covering their tracks. Will they lead to Vahan Gevorkyan? And from him, perhaps, to high-ranking officials. From whom else could Gevorkyan receive information related to state secrets? In this situation, it is no longer necessary to wait for the police to visit you, but for intelligence officers. So this time Gevorkyan clearly played the wrong lotto.

Gevorkyan's trash loss?

It is probably not difficult to guess which circles representatives may hold points where state lottery machines are located, which, however, are not much different from ordinary slot machines. There are such points in every city. Therefore, is it any wonder that the Utility Service Center (CKS) company from Magnitogorsk suddenly took a dominant position in the waste distribution market of the Chelyabinsk region. It’s strange, but the garbage business, like the gambling business, is run by representatives of criminal structures all over the world. Apparently money has no smell.

The traces here also led to Gevorkyan. Yes, he’s just kind of omnipresent! The Chelyabinsk OFAS became interested in the activities of the CCS, which decided to restore order in the market after the closure of the Chelyabinsk landfill. Is it possible that Gevorkyan may also be involved in the garbage business in alliance with regional officials?

For example, there is a very clear connection between the governor of the Chelyabinsk region, Boris Dubrovsky, and Magnitogorsk, where Dubrovsky worked for 5 years as the sales director of the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works. Oddly enough, criminal circles have always gravitated towards metal. Although this, of course, does not prove Dubrovsky’s connection with Gevorkyan.

Jade redistribution?

In 2012, the Public Chamber of Russia discussed a conflict with the Evenki family and clan community “Dylacha”, which mined jade in Buryatia. Over the course of a year, she had 120 checks that revealed nothing. And this gave reason to think that someone wanted to seize the prey.

Soon the community was accused of mining jade on a site other than its own. After which a criminal case was initiated against unidentified persons. However, this was enough for the community leaders to flee abroad. Apparently, in order not to suddenly turn into established persons. Wasn't this a classic "raider" takeover?

In 2013, the Transbaikal Mining Company (ZGK) entered the market, 51% of which belongs to Rostec, and 48% to ZAO Granit. Could Sergei Chemezov’s state corporation really participate in the possible “squeeze” of the enterprise?

Could Sergei Chemezov appoint Gevorkyan as “supervisor”?

Subsequently, ZGK increased its authorized capital from 10 thousand rubles. up to 100 million rubles and Rostec retained only 25.5% of the company, and 73.5% went to Granit CJSC, whose owner turned out to be Forb CJSC. Why did the state corporation and the all-powerful Sergei Chemezov give up their share? And why does the owner of lotteries and the garbage business need jade mining, a business with which he - Gevrokyan hardly knows what to do.

There can be only one version here - Vahan Gevorkyan acted in the interests of some structures and Sergei Chemezov. That is, the head of Rostec simply transferred control of the business to Gevorkyan so as not to expose the true beneficiaries. One of them, for example, could be dollar millionaire Vitaly Maschitsky, who has been friends with Sergei Chemezov for 40 years.

Or maybe in his other businesses Vahan Gevorkyan is not an independent figure? Who can be behind him? Officials or crime bosses? Or perhaps both? Be that as it may, Gevorkyan made an obvious mistake with his application. Which could cost him all his businesses at once.

Did the general director of Prominvest Management Company Boris Savelyev steal 70 million rubles? They were allocated to clarify an application that did not need it. Was businessman Vahan Gevorkyan behind Savelyev?

Boris Savelyev, general director of Prominvest Management Company, was charged with embezzlement in the amount of 70 million rubles. This was reported by a correspondent of The Moscow Post. The money was allocated to clarify the application to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf to expand the territory of the Russian Federation in the Arctic by 1.2 million square meters. km.

Submitted in 2015, the application did not require any clarification. Considering that the case file contains documents containing state secrets, the case may be classified as a state crime. Could the businessman behind Savelyev, Vahan Gevorkyan, be blamed for this?

Gevorkyan is apparently a gambler, because he owns the Stoloto lottery, which is a monopolist on the Russian market - 90% belongs to it. And the lottery itself belongs to TK Center JSC, the founder of which is Forb CJSC Vahan Gevorkyan. How did he manage to grab such a tidbit of Russian “scam”? Why would Gevorkyan have such happiness?

In 2012, two mysterious lottery transactions occurred in the gaming market. An unknown Toksana Holding bought it from Sberbank for 1.9 billion rubles. “Sportloto”, and the unknown company “Nero” CJSC entered into an agreement with the Ministry of Sports to hold “Gosloto” until 2020. The only owner of “Nero” was “Forb”.

It was in 2012 that Vitaly Mutko, who is now the Deputy Prime Minister in charge of construction, became the Minister of Sports. The organizers of lotteries in Russia are the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Sports. In 2012, the position of Minister of Finance was held by Anton Siluanov, who is now also Deputy Prime Minister. Is the entire lottery business in the country really supervised by two deputy prime ministers? But what relation can Vahan Gevorkyan have to them?

Rumor has it that the beneficiary of the lottery companies was Armen Sarkisyan, married to the daughter of former Moscow vice-mayor Joseph Ordzhonikidze, who until 2007 oversaw the gambling and hotel business in Moscow. Ordzhonikidze worked in the government since 1990. Could he have been connected with criminal structures at that troubled time? Is it possible that Vahan Gevorkyan is one of their representatives?

In 2013, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov ordered the development of a new law banning private lotteries, which was supposed to come into force in 2014. The reasoning noted that the lottery market in Russia was wild and criminalized. Instead of an income of 10 billion rubles. the budget received 1 billion rubles. I wonder how much Igor Shuvalov could get from the gambling business tycoons for clearing the market? And does Shuvalov have anything to do with him now?

Igor Shuvalov can “protect” the gambling business in Russia?

In 2016, the created JSC State Sports Lotteries already earned 22.9 billion rubles. versus RUB 3.8 billion in 2013. This company was the largest operator of state lotteries. Sportloto earned 194 billion rubles in 2016. And all the lotteries were distributed by the Stoloto trading house, which earned 10.4 billion rubles in the same year. It was renamed in May of this year to JSC TK Center. All three companies are located at the same address - in Avilon Plaza. And they are allegedly controlled by Armen Sarkesyan. However, they all belong to Forb CJSC.

So who is the real owner of the gambling business in Russia, who runs state lotteries? It is possible that Armen Sarkesyan is just a screen, and the real owners may be representatives of criminal structures. This is, of course, difficult to prove. However, for example, it is no secret that in America the gambling business has always been run by the mafia. Why should it be different in Russia?

In 2016 alone, lotteries brought in more than 30 billion rubles. per year. I wonder how many of them went to the Ministry of Transport and Economics? And could Igor Shuvalov, who at that time apparently oversaw the gambling business, have some kind of share? And how can we call the organizers of a business in which the interests of government officials and possibly representatives of the criminal world could be intertwined?

If we assume Vahan Gevorkyan’s connection with high-ranking officials, then the story of the clarification of the application appears in a completely different light. Perhaps one of the officials gave Gevorkyan a tip on this topic. Like, you can make 70 million rubles from scratch. The application did not need any clarification. Gevorkyan himself did not show off, but he left traces of his connection with Saveyev. And if investigators are interested in this story, they will easily find them.

The Prominvest Management Company was liquidated on April 20, and the Gazinvest Management Company on July 9. Someone was clearly covering their tracks. Will they lead to Vahan Gevorkyan? And from him, perhaps, to high-ranking officials. From whom else could Gevorkyan receive information related to state secrets? In this situation, it is no longer necessary to wait for the police to visit you, but for intelligence officers. So this time Gevorkyan clearly played the wrong lotto.

Gevorkyan's trash loss?

It is probably not difficult to guess which circles representatives may hold points where state lottery machines are located, which, however, are not much different from ordinary slot machines. There are such points in every city. Therefore, is it any wonder that the Utility Service Center (CKS) company from Magnitogorsk suddenly took a dominant position in the waste distribution market of the Chelyabinsk region. It’s strange, but the garbage business, like the gambling business, is run by representatives of criminal structures all over the world. Apparently money has no smell.

The traces here also led to Gevorkyan. Yes, he’s just kind of omnipresent! The Chelyabinsk OFAS became interested in the activities of the CCS, which decided to restore order in the market after the closure of the Chelyabinsk landfill. Is it possible that Gevorkyan may also be involved in the garbage business in alliance with regional officials?

For example, there is a very clear connection between the governor of the Chelyabinsk region, Boris Dubrovsky, and Magnitogorsk, where Dubrovsky worked for 5 years as the sales director of the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works. Oddly enough, criminal circles have always gravitated towards metal. Although this, of course, does not prove Dubrovsky’s connection with Gevorkyan.

Jade redistribution?

In 2012, the Public Chamber of Russia discussed a conflict with the Evenki family and clan community “Dylacha”, which mined jade in Buryatia. Over the course of a year, she had 120 checks that revealed nothing. And this gave reason to think that someone wanted to seize the prey.

Soon the community was accused of mining jade on a site other than its own. After which a criminal case was initiated against unidentified persons. However, this was enough for the community leaders to flee abroad. Apparently, in order not to suddenly turn into established persons. Wasn't this a classic "raider" takeover?

In 2013, the Transbaikal Mining Company (ZGK) entered the market, 51% of which belongs to Rostec, and 48% to ZAO Granit. Could Sergei Chemezov’s state corporation really participate in the possible “squeeze” of the enterprise?

Could Sergei Chemezov appoint Gevorkyan as “supervisor”?

Subsequently, ZGK increased its authorized capital from 10 thousand rubles. up to 100 million rubles and Rostec retained only 25.5% of the company, and 73.5% went to Granit CJSC, whose owner turned out to be Forb CJSC. Why did the state corporation and the all-powerful Sergei Chemezov give up their share? And why does the owner of lotteries and the garbage business need jade mining, a business with which he - Gevrokyan hardly knows what to do.

There can be only one version here - Vahan Gevorkyan acted in the interests of some structures and Sergei Chemezov. That is, the head of Rostec simply transferred control of the business to Gevorkyan so as not to expose the true beneficiaries. One of them, for example, could be dollar millionaire Vitaly Maschitsky, who has been friends with Sergei Chemezov for 40 years.

Or maybe in his other businesses Vahan Gevorkyan is not an independent figure? Who can be behind him? Officials or crime bosses? Or perhaps both? Be that as it may, Gevorkyan made an obvious mistake with his application. Which could cost him all his businesses at once.

CKS continues to fight waste in the Chelyabinsk region. The company can receive 20 million rubles from the budget. Is she supported by Rostec head Sergei Chemezov?