A criminal investigation has been launched into the president of Russian rocket developer RSC Energia.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has instigated a criminal case against Vitaly Lopota, suspecting him of a potential abuse of office. Lopota, who…
A criminal investigation has been launched into the president of Russian rocket developer RSC Energia.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has instigated a criminal case against Vitaly Lopota, suspecting him of a potential abuse of office. Lopota, who has been in charge of Energia since July 2007, faces up to four years in prison if convicted.
According to the Central Federal District Investigations Directorate, the case centres on Lopota’s role in the unprofitable reallocation of proceeds from a loan Energia secured in 2010 to two of its subsidiaries that were buying launch services provider Sea Launch out of bankruptcy.
Having received commercial loans worth Rbs5.2bn (US$146m) in early 2010, Energia transferred approximately Rbs3.4bn (US$95.2m) of the proceeds to its ZAO experimental machine-building plant as an advanced payment on state contracts to construct manned spacecraft.
Lopota is alleged to have then ordered the management of ZAO to provide two loans totalling Rbs3.4bn to other Energia subsidiaries. Specifically, a Rbs2.2bn (US$61.6m) loan to Energia Overseas and a Rbs1.174bn (US$33m) loan to Energia Logistics. Those two companies were in the process of acquiring Sea Launch out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and had agreed to invest US$150m in the company.
Given that Energia’s loan carried an interest rate of 8%, while the loans provided by ZAO had a rate of 5%, the investigators claim Lopota’s actions caused a loss of Rbs41m (US$1.15m) to Energia.
Lopota is therefore accused of using his powers against the interest of the corporation, which is 38%-owned by the Russian state.
The Investigative Committee added that the criminal investigation was launched following a report from the first deputy head of the Federal Space Agency.
