The decline of Energia: part of the assets of the largest rocket and space enterprise may be sold

The assets of Russia's largest rocket and space enterprise, RSC Energia, may be partially transferred to private hands, a number of sources told Izvestia. It is impossible to completely sell the corporation, since it is included in the list of strategic companies, experts said. Earlier, an appeal from its head appeared on the company's internal portal, in which he spoke about the collapse of the enterprise. At the same time, according to the reports for last year, the situation of Energia is improving — profits have appeared, salary debts have gone away. However, there are fewer and fewer projects: Soyuz and Progress launches are declining, and the ISS is being prepared to flood. What can await the corporation is in the Izvestia article.

Letter to the staff of RSC Energia

Part of the assets of RSC Energia (part of Roscosmos) It may go up for sale, several sources told Izvestia. In particular, there is information that the corporation was interested in the investment company Interros, owned by Vladimir Potanin, said one of the interlocutors of the editorial office. At the same time, they did not specify which assets they were talking about and in what quantity.

However, Energia belongs to the list of strategic enterprises in the Russian Federation, so it will not be possible to simply sell it completely, lawyers say. The corporation is such a powerful enterprise that its sale can only be discussed at the very top, Ivan Moiseev, head of the Space Policy Institute, told Izvestia. A government support program may be needed, he added.

Earlier, Igor Maltsev, CEO of Energia, in an address to employees on the occasion of the 79th anniversary of the company, reported on the critical situation in the company. He did not rule out the possibility of "closing the corporation, being unable to function properly, pay wages, let alone create products."

This letter resembles a well—thought-out campaign to prepare public opinion for serious changes in Russia's manned program - either the sale of the enterprise or the initiation of serious budgetary cash injections, a source familiar with the situation told Izvestia.

According to Ivan Moiseev, this appeal was published in order to draw attention to the company's problems. The situation in it is described quite correctly, and its main reason was the anti-Russian sanctions, as a result of which the corporation lost many contracts, he noted.

— Cosmonautics is a global industry. It exists poorly within one country.: this leads to large financial losses and lack of prospects. There are plans to build a Russian station, but this is not enough for such a large enterprise. The number of Soyuz and Progress launches is decreasing as planned. The ISS is about to be flooded, and most of the work for Energia is simply lost. However, the company is needed to continue manned flights. At the same time, there will be much less work related to ROS than on the ISS," the expert said.

In his opinion, the company must be preserved so that Russia can implement the national space station project.

Roscosmos did not respond to Izvestia's questions. The editorial board also sent a request to Interros asking them to clarify whether they are considering the possibility of buying RKK.

— In 2021, the last two ISS modules, Nauka and Prichal, were launched into space. Since then, the largest corporation has only contracts for station maintenance — the delivery of cargo and crews. There are no flights of space tourists, flights of American astronauts are carried out by barter, while until 2022, Americans paid tens of millions of dollars for a seat in the Soyuz. There are certain contracts, but judging by media publications and court databases, the company does not fulfill them either, which entails fines for penalties," the source told the editorial board.

The state of affairs of Energia

As Izvestia found out, legal proceedings are underway against the company. In arbitration courts, the corporation appears as a defendant in six cases — the total amount of claims against it is about 70 million rubles. So, in the spring of this year, the Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal partially satisfied the claim of Roscosmos against Energia. According to the Rusprofile database, it was a question of non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment of obligations under contract agreements in the amount of about 35 million rubles. The company is also currently in proceedings with Vodokanal JSC in the amount of more than 23 million rubles, with the head scientific research institute of Roscosmos TsNIIMash in the amount of about 10 million rubles and other organizations.

As for the financial situation of the company, an analysis of the company's annual report for 2024 indicates that net profit increased by 184%, and there are no outstanding payments to the budget or salaries, said Mariam Yuzbashyan, an expert in international space law.

According to her, other key indicators and factors for the long-term effective functioning of RSC Energia include confirmation of the validity of certificates of conformity for rocket and space technology, compliance with other industry regulatory requirements, the absence of quality complaints, and the phased implementation of the organization's financial recovery program. Another indicator is RCC's statement, confirmed by the reporting data, that the risk of default to creditors "is minimal and there are no doubts about the ability to continue its activities continuously," the expert said.

— RSC Energia has direct competitors only in the global market. There are no analogues among Russian enterprises, the role of the corporation remains in the international arena, which is confirmed by existing contracts," the specialist noted.

Currently, the company's high hopes are associated with the creation of a Russian orbital station, said Dmitry Strugovets, a space expert. According to him, only a large national project, especially one designed for decades, can save the financial situation of the corporation. However, the corporation's position in pushing its version of the station is weakening every day, and the new leadership of Roscosmos has its own vision of the station's appearance, he noted.

Scientific activity of Energia

As for the implementation of the scientific program, there were no special problems in terms of cooperation, a leading researcher at the Space Research Institute told Izvestia WOUNDED Nathan Eismont.

— They carry out their plans. Postponements are certainly present, but they have always been there. Our lines of cooperation are mainly on the ISS. The latest instrument on the station, which was manufactured at the Space Research Institute, refers to reliable and detailed measurements of radiation. Everything is fine with him, everything is working, information is being received. If we talk about future plans, here we are talking about growth. Preparations are underway, and the relevant agreements are also being implemented. There are no problems on the interaction surface," the scientist told Izvestia.

RSC Energia has experienced all the industry diseases that cosmonautics has suffered from over the past 30 years — these are incessant reforms, unclear strategic planning and lack of consensus among professionals on which projects need to be implemented, Sergei Zhukov, a member of the Russian Academy of Cosmonautics, told Izvestia.

— "Energy" must be saved in some format. First of all, it is necessary to conduct a large—scale inventory of all the company's developments - both in paper and digital form, as well as existing assets and equipment. At the next stage, a core should be allocated, which will be funded by the state, and commercial programs that can be implemented as part of a public-private partnership," he said.

According to the expert, it is necessary to change the format of the state corporation and return to a state agency that will not be responsible for economic activities. It should be organizationally separated from the commercial component, which, in turn, will operate in a competitive environment. According to him, such an agency will be responsible for the state order and will have the freedom to choose contractors. The specialist stressed that in addition to commercial projects, there are fundamental research and defense issues, for which the state is responsible.