Gazprom prepares relaunch of home appliance production at former Bosch plant site
MOSCOW. April 16 (Interfax) - The relaunch of home appliance production at the site of the Russian Bosch plant is being prepared under the management of JSC Gazprom Household Systems.
"External management plans to resume production as soon as possible," an explanatory note to the financial statements of BSH Household Appliances LLC said. The company has been under the management of Gazprom's subsidiary since April 2024.
"Significant changes occurred in 2024, and there is confidence that further major changes with favorable consequences for BSH Household Appliances LLC will take place in 2025 regarding the technical, market, economic or legal conditions in which the company operates," BSH Household Appliances said.
"Since late 2024, preparatory work has been underway for the planned launch of refrigerator and washing machine production in 2025. This includes recommissioning production equipment, calibrating and adjusting it, sourcing raw materials and components that meet project requirements, developing prototypes, and testing trial batches," it said.
The company's management has prepared a revenue and expenditure forecast extending to 2035.
"The production of refrigerators and washing machines will utilize the company's production assets, restored to proper condition to achieve planned output levels and gradually reach maximum capacity over time. The financial model envisions annual capacity increases, limited by workforce growth and gradual equipment optimization, as well as the use of new raw materials and components," it said.
In addition, the Federal Notary Chamber announced the appearance of collateral on BSH Household Appliances' equipment and vehicles in favor of Sberbank from April 14 until August 26, 2026. This collateral secures a revolving credit line with a maximum limit of 852 million rubles for working capital replenishment at a floating interest rate.
BSH Household Appliances is registered in St. Petersburg, in Peterhof. Until 2022, the enterprise was engaged in serial production of refrigerators and washing machines, later shifting exclusively to spare parts distribution, wholesale and retail trade of home appliances, and service and warranty maintenance for Bosch, Siemens, Gaggenau, Neff and Zelmer brand appliances.
Before production halted, the company employed over 1,000 people. By 2023, average headcount had fallen to 635. Its revenue peaked at 50 billion rubles in 2021, dropped to 20 billion in 2022, then to 2 billion in 2023, and further to 100 million in 2024.
In 2022, Bosch announced the suspension of home appliance production and deliveries for the Russian market.