Stadler to keep plant in Belarus, expects sanctions to be lifted

MINSK. Sept 1 (Interfax) - Stadler will hang on to its plant in Belarus in the expectation that sanctions will be lifted, the Swiss railway vehicle manufacturer said in its report for the first half of 2023.

"The [...] sanctions against Belarus are continuing to have an impact on Stadler and the plant in Fanipol [Minsk region]. On account of the very good order situation, the high capacity utilisation of the other Group locations and the high level of skills and quality offered by the Fanipol plant in terms of value added, Stadler is holding on to the plant in Belarus so that it can reopen it as soon as the sanctions have been lifted," the company said.

The plant continues to provide services in car body and component production, as well as in the field of engineering, "in strict compliance with all the sanctions," Stadler said.

"During the preparation of the 2023 half-year report, Stadler's management prepared a business plan for the Fanipol plant. An impairment test was then conducted based on this plan. This shows that the existing assets are covered by future cash flows despite the current restrictions and the temporary reduction of capacities," Stadler said.

The report indicated that company management did not make any significant changes in the estimates and assumptions in the consolidated financial statement for the first half of 2023 compared to those made in the financial statement for 2022.

"Stadler is constantly monitoring the situation and taking all possible measures to minimize any negative effects," the company said.

Stadler Rail subsidiary Stadler Minsk, a resident of the Minsk free economic zone, was Belarus's largest manufacturer of rolling stock until the imposition of EU sanctions on June 4, 2022. The plant had manufactured and supplied railway products since 2014 to CIS countries with track gauges of 1520 mm and 1524 mm, as well as countries in Europe and Latin America. After sanctions were imposed, Stadler announced it would downsize staff at the Belarusian plant and move some production to Poland and Switzerland.