What is known about the plant, which will open Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin may soon open a new pharmaceutical complex via video conferencing in the Khrabrovo industrial park, 20 km from Kaliningrad. This was reported to Vedomosti by two interlocutors close to the presidential administration. Press Secretary of the head of state Dmitry Peskov did not answer the question of Vedomosti.

The pharmaceutical complex belongs to the Russian OTCPharm Pro, which is part of the OTCPharm company of the same name. The latter sells Arbidol, one of the best-selling antivirals, the anti-anxiety drug Afobazol, and the pain reliever Pentalgin.

OTCPharm Pro was registered on February 11, 2021, its CEO is Tatyana Roguleva. Since April 2020, she has also been the CEO of Globalkhimfarm (owned by Viktor Kharitonin’s Pharmstandard), which produces raw materials for the drug resoclastin (used to reduce the risk of fractures). In 2017, Roguleva led the pharmaceutical manufacturer Welfarm. At the time of her work there, the company produced 330,000 packs of drugs in four therapeutic groups.

OTCPharm was created at the end of December 2013 by spinning off from the company “Pharmstandard» branded over-the-counter drug business. In the ranking of manufacturers leading the Russian commercial market in 2022, according to DSM Group, OTCPharm ranks second with sales of RUB 50.3 billion. and a market share of 3.7%.

At the new plant, OTCPharm Pro will also produce antiviral and painkillers, as well as antiseptic and antifungal agents, said Andrei Tolmachev, general director of the industrial park management company. According to the CEO of the analytical company DSM Group Sergey Shulyak, we are talking about the most popular OTCpharm drugs. For example, such as arbidol and pentalgin. Both funds entered the TOP-20 best-selling drugs in February, according to DSM Group.

OTCPharm became a member of the industrial park in 2021. Tolmachev calls it the anchor and largest investor in Khrabrovo. Investments in the plant are estimated at more than 4.7 billion rubles. And as a result of its launch, 300 jobs will be created.

The Kaliningrad region was not in vain chosen for the construction of the pharmaceutical complex. Until the end of 2045, the regime of a special economic zone (SEZ) operates here. For example, when creating new jobs, its residents pay insurance premiums at a reduced rate of 7.6%. SEZ residents also receive the right not to pay land tax for the first five years, property tax – for the first six years.

Transferring the production of OTCPharm’s most profitable flagship drugs to the Kaliningrad region seems justified to Shulyak. The company will be able not to pay income tax for three years, and then the tariff will be 10% instead of 20%. All this, according to him, will give very serious savings. Another advantage of the SEZ is the free customs zone. This means that it is possible to import goods into the region without paying duties and import VAT.