The largest manufacturer of automotive glass in the Russian Federation has changed its owner

As Kommersant has learned, the Japanese AGC, which is the world’s largest glass manufacturer, has sold its Russian business. The Bor Glass Factory (BSZ) and the Klin Glass Factory were acquired by the St. Petersburg holding company Adamant, which is one of the largest glass processors in Russia. The transaction price has not been disclosed. Over the past two years, enterprises have stagnated, as sanctions did not allow the Japanese company to develop production.

The Bor Glass Factory, the largest manufacturer of automobile glass in the Russian Federation, and the Klin Glass Factory were sold as a single lot to the St. Petersburg holding company Adamant, Sergei Knyazev, director of both enterprises, told Kommersant. According to him, the transaction was carried out on February 19. The enterprises belonged to AGC Glass Europe, the European division of the Japanese AGC, the world’s largest glass manufacturer. Sergei Knyazev did not disclose the size of the deal.

AGC acquired the Bor glass factory in 1997. According to SPARK-Interfax, 85.2% of the shares of AGC BSZ JSC belonged to AGC Glass Europe (Belgium), 8.6% to Menarai Nolding GMBN (Austria). BSZ produces polished glass and automotive glass. The capacity is 1.2 thousand tons per day and up to 1.5 million sets of tempered and laminated automotive glass per year. The company is the largest manufacturer of automotive glass in Russia. The plant’s financial statements have not been disclosed since 2021.

The company built the Klin glass factory (“AGC Flat Glass Klin”) from scratch in 2004. The company produces 1.6 thousand tons of float glass per day. The plant operates the largest glass melting furnace in Europe with a capacity of 1 thousand tons of glass per day, two lines for the production of glass with magnetron coating, a production line for building triplex, a line for the production of lacquered glass and mirror cloth. According to SPARK-Interfax, in 2022 the plant’s revenue amounted to just over 18 billion rubles, net profit – 2.1 billion rubles.

As Kommersant wrote, in March 2022, the Japanese AGC INC suspended investments in the Russian Federation and also reduced the supply of its products to the Russian market.

For two years, the enterprises “were in some stagnation,” Sergei Knyazev told Kommersant. Therefore, Mr. Knyazev assesses the arrival of a new investor, who presented a multi-year development plan for both plants, positively.

At the same time, he refused to name the volume of investments in the development of production.

The Adamant holding, whose president is Igor Leitis, is a large glass processor – it includes 50 enterprises, 22 shopping centers and the Russian Glass Company (RSK) (manages 14 factories for industrial glass processing). In the early 2000s, Igor Leitis bought the Borskoye Steklo company from BSZ, which included four glass processing plants. According to the Russian Glass Company’s own estimates, it accounts for 25% of facade glass produced in Russia. The annual production volume of DGC is 3 million square meters. m of double-glazed windows. According to SPARK-Interfax, the company’s revenue in 2022 amounted to 10.4 billion rubles, net profit exceeded 2 billion rubles.

Alexandra Vikulova, Nizhny Novgorod