“Passenger train” will change its name and could cost up to € 100,000 for rebranding In Latvia

Electric train manufacturer “Pasažieru vilciens” procurements of new passenger trains have been canceled, relocated and related to many scandals during the last ten years. A year ago, we managed to sign an agreement with the Czech company Škoda Vagonka. The amount of the transaction is 255 million euros. It has become known to the program “Nekā personīga” that it has also been decided to change the name of JSC “Pasažieru vilciens”. The “passenger train” will hereinafter be referred to as “VIVI Latvija”. The development and implementation of the new design will cost up to 100,000 euros. A company is involved in Rebrending, where one of its representatives has very close ties with Aivars Lembergs, who is included in the US sanctions list.

The purchase of passenger trains has been shrouded in scandals and failures. The management of the former company was even tried for spending 1.4 million in preparation, but without concluding a contract with the Spanish company “CAF”. The regional court ruled that the board Mārtiņš Jirgen, Edmunds Kancēvičs, Jānis Pētersons and the former state secretary of the Minister of Transport Ainars Slesers Nils Freivalds must repay this money. “Nothing personal” is known to have been appealed in the final instance by the former board. On July 7, the case was accepted by the Supreme Court. The review date has not yet been set.

Last summer, the Passenger Train, the Minister of Transport and the Czech Škoda Vagonka finally signed an agreement for the production and delivery of 32 trains. The trains will cost 242 million euros. For another 14 million will build a repair depot. “Nothing personal” has become known that train production had to start at the end of August. But this has not happened. And the technical design of the new trains, which is being developed by the Passenger Train together with Škoda, has not been approved either.

Ivo Gurnak, the project manager of the Czech company, has been blamed for the Covid-19 virus and promises to eliminate the delay. But due to which side – Latvia or the Czech Republic, a project has not been prepared without which production cannot start, none of the parties involved reveals.

Production was due to start on August 20 this year and has not started.

Chairman of the Board of JSC “Pasažieru vilciens” Rodžers Jānis Grigulis

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These are internal deadlines and can be shifted from one side to the other. The most important thing for us – the contract specifies the delivery term. The delivery date has remained unchanged and the delivery date is May 2022. Understand, this is the responsibility of the Czech partner, where, within what internal deadlines, what they do. We do not control these deadlines.

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Ivo Gurnak, Sales Director of Škoda Vagonka

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We are currently examining how the Covid virus has affected the schedule and whether it has. And we take all the steps to achieve the schedule.

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Shortly before the start of the pandemic, the Passenger Train presented the planned train design. They will be traffic yellow, anthracite gray and dark gray.

“Nothing personal” has information that this will not be the only change – it has been decided to change the name of “Passenger train” as well. Hereinafter it will be called “VIVI Latvia”. This means there will be new employee forms, business cards, forms, website design and more. The company’s management does not reveal exactly how much this could cost – on average from several tens of thousands to 100 thousand euros.

To the question of “Nothing personal” whether the name change and rebranding will cost up to one hundred thousand, Rodžers Jānis Grigulis, Chairman of the Board of JSC “Pasažieru vilciens”, answered that no more. He also did not comment on what the company would be called in the future, stating that he did not want to talk about it for the time being.

A tender for the creation of a new “Passenger Train” identity was announced on April 16 last year. It ended on May 24. The contracts with the winners were signed in the autumn, when the Procurement Monitoring Bureau allowed to finish the contract with the Czech Škoda. Presenting the painting of the new wagons, “Passenger Train” publicly announced that it had been developed by “Design Studio TEIKA”. But according to publicly available data from the State Revenue Service, this studio had a tax debt at the time of both the tender and the contract. In May 2019, it reaches 10,000 euros.

In last year’s report, the management of Dizaina studija TEIKA states that “the company is currently in financial difficulties and is unable to cover its current payments on time”. Probably, therefore, the contract with “Passenger Train” was concluded by the company “PRINTPIGEONS”, which was established just a month before the tender and belongs to the same entrepreneur who will manage the tax debtor “Dizaina studika TEIKA”.

The only one who can comment on the purchase is the representative of both companies Ģirts Draugs, who was in Estonia this week and did not answer the calls “Nekā personīga”.

Asked by “Nekā personīga” whether another company that is related to the same people as in “Dizaina studija Teika” applied for the procurement, Rodžers Jānis Grigulis, Chairman of the Board of JSC “Pasažieru vilciens”, said that it was difficult for him to say because he does not examine all the company’s liabilities… To the question whether it is “PRINTPIGEONS”, he answered in the affirmative.

Grigulis did not rule out the connection to the objection that it was said publicly everywhere that “Design Studio TEIKA” is the one who develops it all.

Rodžers Jānis Grigulis, Chairman of the Board of Passenger Train

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It’s probably a brand, just like any business. It’s hard to comment on their brand, whether it’s him or not. We close it with a legal entity. The legal entity assumes responsibility, and this legal entity is exactly what makes up both this design and these works.

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The management report on the economic activity of “Dizaina studija TEIKA” in 2019 states that the company closed 2019 with a loss of 28,016 euros. Net turnover in 2019 was 39,914 euros. The amount of the Company’s equity as of 31 December 2019 is 44,313 euros. The Company is currently in financial difficulties and is unable to meet its current payments on time, but management believes that the problems are short-lived and that the Company will be able to improve its liquidity, cash flow and profitability.

“Design studios TEIKA” and “PRINTPIGIONS” services will cost “Passenger train” 34 100 euros without VAT. But in the procurement they were invited to start together by SIA “Mežgaile. Māliņa, Austriņš ”. The company has signed a contract for 7850 euros. And they will oversee the implementation of the new Passenger Train identity and its communication. These are the people who run the public relations agency Hill & Knowlton. One of its representatives, Jānis Austriņš, in a conversation without a camera “Nekā personīga” claims that he does not know anything about this purchase. He may have been to a meeting with the “Passenger Train” once.

Iveta Stepanova, partner and project director of MM&A / Hill & Knowlton, answers in the affirmative to the question whether the competition will go together with “Design Studio Teika”.

MM&A / Hill & Knowlton partner and project director Iveta Stepanova

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We went together because “Teika” did and could submit for its competence. We started with our competence. Primitively speaking, they drew and we wrote.

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Asked if the artists themselves had been found before, she answered in the affirmative.

MM&A / Hill & Knowlton partner and project director Iveta Stepanova

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Yes, we have either recommended or used their service to other clients in other contests.

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Austriņš is publicly known not only as a PR specialist, but also as the daughter of Aivars Lembergs. He also took part in the presentation of the idea of ​​electrifying trains three years ago. At that time, it was the largest investment project and all entrepreneurs involved in the transit business were interested in it.

In January 2017, when asked whether Austriņš’s participation in the electrification project could be related to the fact that he is a relative of Aivars Lembergs, he answered in the negative.

Jānis Austriņš, Project Director of MM&A / Hill & Knowlton

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You draw very far-reaching conclusions, it has nothing to do with it.

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Chairman of the Board of JSC “Pasažieru vilciens” Rodžers Jānis Grigulis

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I do not know Mr Lembergs’ relatives at all and there is no cooperation with him. Given his remarks about our company, I think that we can hardly have any cooperation with Mr Lembergs at all.

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Minister of Transport (JKP) Tālis Linkaits

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In my opinion, the new corporate style of the Passenger Train and all the other issues related to it have not yet been approved and accepted, and therefore no communication is taking place about it, there is nothing to communicate yet.

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Maybe you can tell in more detail – there’s nothing to communicate. This means that this project is currently at a stage where there is nothing to communicate or no contract with these people – I just want to clarify.

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Minister of Transport (JKP) Tālis Linkaits

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There is nothing to communicate, there is no object of communication itself.

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But then you don’t know if or not there is an agreement with these people here.

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Minister of Transport (JKP) Tālis Linkaits

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There is nothing to communicate. No communication object. Therefore, nothing can be paid to anyone without communication objects.

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Škoda Latvija has already made an advance payment. According to the chairman of the board of “Passenger Train”, they are about 30 million euros. The payment is secured by bank guarantees. And if the Czech side does not fulfill the agreement, Latvia will be able to recover the money already paid.

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