Regional retailer RBT.ru is building a factory for the production of refrigerators in Novosibirsk

The regional network of electronics stores RBT.ru is building a factory for the production of refrigerators under its own Leran brand in Novosibirsk. The company also organizes contract assembly of household appliances, and some domestic brands are already interested in localizing production in Novosibirsk. Experts estimate investments in the plant at $30-60 million, and the capacity – at 250-300 thousand devices per year. Other brands are also showing interest in capacity, but the plant can be set up primarily for budget equipment.

Kommersant’s sources in the market said that RBT.ru is launching a project to build a plant for the production of refrigerators in Novosibirsk. According to one of them, the company will produce refrigerators of its own brand Leran, and the company will also provide capacities for contract production. Another interlocutor of Kommersant noted that the enterprise will provide jobs for 150-200 people.

As a Kommersant source in the household appliances market explains, a plant with up to 200 employees can be classified as small: “Large plants employ 600–1,000 people.”

According to Kommersant’s interlocutor, we can talk about assembling 250-300 thousand devices a year against, for example, 1 million at the Russian Bosh plant. On the website of the developer Stroybusinessgroup, Kommersant discovered a project for the construction of a distribution complex for the company RBT.ru in Novosibirsk with a total area of ​​26 thousand square meters. m. Stroybusinessgroup did not respond to a request. RBT Company LLC declined to comment.

RBT.ru was among those who wanted to organize the production of their equipment at the stopped Bosch plant near St. Petersburg, but the parties could not agree, one of the market participants notes. Now RBT electronics can be produced at contract manufacturing facilities in China and Turkey, and negotiations were also held on localization at the facilities of the Turkish Archelik in Lipetsk, Kommersant sources add.

According to M.Video-Eldorado, over 1.5 million refrigerators were sold on the Russian market in the first half of the year, up 5% year-on-year. In money terms, the market volume amounted to 55 billion rubles. According to the retailer, Haier, Indesit and Biryusa became the best-selling brands.

RBT is building a plant primarily for its own needs, to sell refrigerators online and on marketplaces, says a representative of F+ tech | Marvel”. In his opinion, only the assembly of refrigerators from Chinese components will be organized at the enterprise: “Own production will allow us to avoid customs duties on household appliances, which will increase in the near future, and will also save on expensive transportation.”

At F+ tech | Marvel” added that Leran is a budget category equipment, “the plant will be designed for it”, so it is unlikely that its facilities will produce products of a higher level: “If we consider it as an OEM production site (original equipment manufacturer) , that is, there are doubts that the capacities will be in demand. Customers most often need mid-level equipment, and not the most budgetary one. ”

Nevertheless, other market participants are showing interest in assembly facilities. Thus, a representative of the domestic consumer electronics manufacturer Schaub Lorenz said that the company is ready to consider the RBT site for the contract production of equipment: “However, everything will depend on the price.”

According to Kommersant’s interlocutor, investments in the plant in Novosibirsk could amount to $30–60 million (2.8–5.6 billion rubles at the exchange rate as of August 21).

Aleksey Belyakov, CEO of E.Kampani (manufacturer of Vard equipment), also confirms his interest in contract assembly in Novosibirsk: “The cost of refrigerators has a very high share of logistics, so the location of the factory in the center of the country can reduce costs.”

Timofey Kornev