What may 2016 hold for Biosintez (Penza)?

Many people in Penza take interest in fate of Biosintez – one of the largest enterprises of pharmaceutical industry of the Russian Federation and one of the largest enterprises of the region. Especially those people who work or worked for it.

9/4/2015 the Board of Directors decision was placed in a site, where OJSC Biosintez places its information according to the law “On joint-stock companies”. This is an approval of revision of the agreements concluded earlier between Biosintez and Sberbank (Savings Bank of the Russian Federation), from which Biosintez borrowed the credits.

According to the largest agreement, 1184.78 million rbl. were credited for purchasing, delivery and installation of the process equipment and the equipment for complexes of clean rooms (the agreements with a Chinese company). Due to it the sections of manufacture of injections in ampoules and infusions in bottles have been constructed and commissioned.

The enterprise equipment, 264 positions in total, book value of 1276.34 million rbl., hypothecation value (with discount of 25 %) of 957.26 million rbl. was pledged to receive this credit.

Because it was insufficient for Sberbank, the real assets were additionally pledged – 66 buildings, 2 ground areas by a total area of 56.8 hectares and the lease rights of 6 ground areas by a total area of 4.5 hectares. The total hypothecation value of these real assets was 1048.45 million rbl. This hypothecation value was determined on the basis of market value with hypothecation discount of 45 % for the real assets and 10 % for the lease rights.

It was borrowed three more credits, using these real assets as a collateral (as the hypothecation value permitted) – 195.22 million rbl., 200.0 million rbl., 300.0 million rbl., i.e. in total 4 credits, 1743.67 million rbl.

What does it mean? The total hypothecation value is 2.006 billion rbl., the market value is more, taking into account the hypothecation discount.

Experts in the Internet estimated the Biosintez total value in 2005 (when Mr. Spiegel acquired its controlling stock) in 40 million USD, at the beginning of 2012 – in 50 million USD. Theoretically it should increase in result of commissioning of the above-mentioned sections, for which the credit was borrowed, but as known, it depends rather on profit, which is insignificant at Biosintez (see below), but not on value of fixed capital.

2 billion rbl. at the current exchange rate are about 32 million USD. Therefore it is possible to assume that Biosintez is pledged in about half. The long list of the pledged equipment and buildings well meets to it. (It can be added in brackets that Biosintez is a single industrial complex, and obviously one half of it cannot work without second half.) Concerning the ground areas, it was specified in the documents, which were compounded by me when I worked for Biosintez – the area of the enterprise is about 60 hectares. That is the all ground areas are pledged.

Can Biosintez pay off these debts? In the Board of Directors decision the repayment schedules of three credits are given.

The largest credit of 1184.78 million rbl. – 20 % per year in 2016-20, 236.96 million rbl. per year.

The credit of 195.22 million rbl. –50 % per year in 2016-17, 97.61 million rbl. per year.

The credit of 200.0 million rbl. – 10 % in 2014, 20 million rbl., 40 % per year in 2015-16, 80 million rbl. per year, 10 % in 2017, 20 million rbl.

For the credit of 300.0 million rbl. the repayment schedule is not given in this decision (as it is an amendment, and the schedule was given in the initial document). But this credit was in a group of interrelated transactions together with the largest credit, Biosintez got the funds under these agreements simultaneously in 2012-14, and most likely this credit will be also repaid in 2016-20 in equal parts, i.e. 60 million rbl. per year.

The results in total are as follows: in 2014 – 20 million rbl., in 2015 – 80 million rbl., in 2016 – 474.57 million rbl., in 2017 – 414.57 million rbl., in 2018-20 – 296.96 million rbl. per year.

All the above-stated sums are given without percents.

The results of Biosintez activity were as follows: in 2013 – 2.894 billion rbl. of proceeds, 551.77 million rbl. of profit on sales, 95.3 million rbl. of net profit, in 2014 – 2.592 billion rbl. of proceeds, 263.72 million rbl. of profit on sales, 0.04 million rbl. of net profit.

Having such results, it is very unlikely to pay the sum, which should be repaid in 2016. Therefore either the debts will be re-structured, or Sberbank will claim the pledge.

Already from the end of 2014 Biosintez has got appreciable financial difficulties. It actually operates under financial control of Sberbank – I do not know accurate legal formulation of it, but in essence it so. And salary payment delays began, up to one month.

That will be in the future – it depends, as I consider, mainly on will of the creditor, Sberbank.

Undoubtedly, Biosintez needs help. In idea, Biotec holding (belonging to Mr. Spiegel), which controls Biosintez, should help first of all. It is very likely that support of the local authorities will be needed. But, in my opinion, the State, at the Federal level should intervene and take Biosintez under its control.

Syntez (Kurgan) (“brother” of Biosintez (Penza) in the All-Union Antibiotics production association of the Ministry of medical industry of the USSR) has been already gone under control of the National immunological company (holding of the Rostec state corporation). Can something similar be done with our Biosintez too? Undoubtedly, the State can arrange with Sberbank.

M. Yakhkind

Candidate of Technics (PhD), freelancer and independent expert in the field of chemistry and pharmaceutics

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