A fund with former Russian participation and a company with American assets. generals invest $ 1 billion in energy

There is a serious interest in building large photovoltaics in the Maritza East mine.

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Russian oligarchs and the bankrupt Bulgarian bank KTB were involved in a possible investment by a British-American consortium in the Bulgarian energy sector. Publications with similar doubts came out hours after Energy Minister Alexander Nikolov, under the watchful eye of Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, signed a $ 1 billion investment memorandum with a consortium of Gemcorp and IP3.

The memorandum is for cooperation on clean energy, alternative gas supplies, a hybrid industrial park in the Mari basin, as well as nuclear fuel management plans.

The Bulgarian government expects investments of $ 1 billion from the British Gemcorp Capital Management Ltd. and the American IP3 Corporation.

Publications on the BIRD websites (project of Bivol owner Atanas Chobanov) and Pik connected Gemcorp Capital Management Ltd. with Russian oligarch Albert Avdolyan, who is said to be close to Putin.

Emphasis is also placed on the participation in this investment fund of Atanas Bostandjiev, who was in VTB Capital, called Putin’s bank in the media. He attended the ceremony at the Council of Ministers on Wednesday.

From the company’s website it is clear that indeed

founder and

Chairman of

this fund is

the Bulgarian

Atanas

Bostandzhiev,

he is responsible for the overall management of the company and is a member of the investment committee. Prior to founding the company, Bostandjiev was CEO of VTB Capital UK and previously a partner at Goldman Sachs in London, where he was responsible for jointly managing businesses with emerging markets in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He began his career at Merrill Lynch in Frankfurt in 1998, with a bachelor’s degree from the College of Medicine in Washington, D.C., according to his biographical notes.

The team also includes another Bulgarian – Parvoleta Shtereva, who is responsible for the investment portfolio of the company, as well as for the implementation and management of investments. She is also a member of the investment committee. The first year spent most of her career in loan portfolio management for Black River Asset Management and Goldman Sachs. She has more than two decades of experience in Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East, it is announced in her CV.

Gemcorp was among the minority shareholders of the bankrupt Corporate Commercial Bank, which in 2014 wanted to save it.

The co-founder of the Gemcorp fund in 2014 is Albert Avdolyan, according to the Russian version of Wikipedia. However, his name is linked to Rostech chief Sergei Chemezov, who is considered one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most trusted people (both of whom are Soviet KGB colleagues), according to a publication released late Wednesday night.

By 2020, however, the company is clearly changing.

A March 17 news release on the Ukrainian war said that Russia had been a key supplier of grain to some of their customers, but that this was a relatively small part of the company’s overall international business. plan. Gemcorp Commodities Trading, the Gemcorp Group’s commodities trading business, ran a grain buying business in Russia in 2019 and 2020, but closed in the first half of 2021 after negative market conditions. The company’s office in Russia was closed in mid-2021, the company said.

It is also written that

“It simply came to our notice then

Russian

investors

or customers

The original investor in Gemcorp Capital was a Russian individual who has never been subject to sanctions. This investment has gone through strict KYC and intensified compliance checks. This investor left the fund in October 2020. We have not had other Russian investors “, Gemkorp writes.

The purchase of the shares has also been noticed by financial publications in Europe.

Former Deputy Prime Minister in the government of Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Nikolay Vassilev told 24 Chasa that he has known Atanas Bostandjiev since 1997 and Parvoleta Shtereva since 1985. They are both exceptional professionals and one of the best financiers and investment bankers. which Bulgaria once had. Whatever they have been doing for the last 20-30 years, they currently have a company with British and American capital and I think their investment is first class. Let them answer, but according to my information for several years they have nothing to do with Russian personalities or businesses, “Vassilev said, adding that as far as he knows,

Gemcorp Capital

Management Ltd.

is on them both

The other company that has committed to investing in the memorandum signed by Bulgaria’s Energy Minister Nikolov is the US IP3 Corporation. And while Gemcorp has a recent Russian presence, the US fund is run by senior US military officials.

Co-founder and CEO of IP3 (International Peace, Power, and Prosperity) is Rear Admiral Michael Hewitt, who retired from active service after 31 years in the US Navy, was a naval pilot.

There are also five directors of the fund, two of whom are retired general and admiral.

Admiral Eric Olson of the US Navy has resigned since 2011.

He was the first

officer from

naval

seals, elevated

to ranks from three and

four stars

He is presented as one of the most important leaders in US national security, who continues to teach and shape innovative and operational approaches to long-term stability.

General James Cartwright was in the United States Marine Corps. He served as Commander of the United States Strategic Command.

Dr. Lars Butler is presented as a leader in venture capital finance and innovation, recognized for his expertise in technology and cybersecurity.

Mike J. Rodgers was (from 2001 to 2015) a member of the US House of Representatives of the 8th Congressional District of Michigan. From 2011 to 2015, he chaired the Standing Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives. He was a senior national security adviser on Trump’s transition team before joining the Oval Office. The only lady on the director’s team is Georgette Mosbacher. She was an ambassador to Poland, presented as an internationally recognized entrepreneur, author, speaker, philanthropist and diplomat. It has provided guidance on the most important diplomatic issues in the Central European region, many of which include defense, energy and technology.

She was the initiator of the first agreement on the use of American technology in Poland’s emerging civilian nuclear program. The corporation was established in 2016, when it became clear that many nations in Europe, Africa and Asia, as well as in the Middle East, intend to adopt nuclear energy production, the presentation said. IP3 Corporation is a developer of nuclear energy programs in coordination with its subsidiary, Allied Nuclear Partners (ANP). A second subsidiary, IP3 Security, provides physical and cybersecurity experience.

What will they do

we?

The announcement from the Ministry of Energy shows that with the two companies – British and American, it will cooperate in planning projects for clean energy, alternative and strategic gas supplies, security of energy supply and nuclear energy.

And more – expressed interest in increasing regional security and protection of critical infrastructure, support for the green transition and most importantly – a study to build a hybrid industrial complex on the territory of “Maritsa East”.

The companies also intend to develop sustainable plans for the management and use of nuclear fuel.

How to read all that covers all energy?

Ivan Hinovski, an energy expert for There Are Such People, says the US company is one of the biggest investors in investing in two new nuclear facilities in the United States. He is interested in small reactors, as well as to finance the implementation of the Westinghouse fuel in the fifth unit of Kozloduy. From sources in the kitchen he heard that representatives of the fund

have had meetings

in the US with people from

the Bulgarian

delegation

during the recent visit of Asen Vassilev. He admits that it is possible that they are interested in a new nuclear power plant in our country.

As for the British fund Gemcorp, if Russian participation is proven, there would be a reaction from the European Commission, the expert said.

According to other experts, these companies have presented in the state energy in our country prospectuses rather than projects. Their vision for Marbas was once to capture carbon dioxide emissions and produce chemical products in a chemical plant, such as ammonia and others. In this way, part of the coal capacity could remain operational. The second intention was to build huge photovoltaic plants on reclaimed mines and produce hydrogen from them. Small modular reactors could also be built there. But no one is saying where the water will come from, they comment.

Another American company, NuScale, also wants to build small modular facilities, but on the territory of Kozloduy. She has signed a memorandum with BEH since November last year.

There is also a huge interest in the Maritza East complex from foreign companies. Large Greek companies, along with Dutch ones, have also visited us with the desire to make photovoltaics with a capacity of 2-3 gigawatts.

“We have seen many projects,” people from the energy sector said, expressing serious doubts that there would be investment. Others directly stated: “Nothing will happen, they will just raise their shares.”

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