The Ministry of Industry and Trade announced the transfer of Essity assets to Russian shareholders

The Swedish manufacturer of goods for hygiene and health Essity (owns the brands Zewa, Libresse, Libero) will transfer control of its assets in Russia to Russian shareholders, the press service of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation reported.

“The activity of the enterprise will continue, and this decision will not affect the range and volumes of products, will not affect its value,” the ministry said (quote according to TASS).

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also added that they were monitoring the process of transferring the rights to the company and assured that jobs at Essity factories would be saved.

Officially a Swedish company announced about his departure today, June 10. The statement says that Essity “refuses” the Russian business and the company has already signed an agreement with the buyer, and the deal was approved by the Russian authorities. It is expected that the procedures for the sale of the business will be completed in the second quarter of 2023.

The manufacturer also said that he began to take steps to withdraw from the Russian market in April last year. Then in Essity declaredthat the company’s assets in Russia were impaired by approximately SEK 1.4 billion (over $129 million).

Essity began operating in Russia in 1994. Four years later, the company bought a sanitary products factory in the Leningrad region, which produced goods under the Tork and Zewa brands. In 2010, the company opened two factories in the Tula region for the production of toilet paper, diapers for children and adults, and personal care products for women.