NIIK went bankrupt

The Commercial Court of the Nizhny Novgorod region declared the Research Institute of Urea and Organic Synthesis Products (hereinafter NIIK, Nizhny Novgorod region) bankrupt, and bankruptcy proceedings were started. Its director, Igor Yesin, was removed from his duties, and Svetlana Spoludennaya was appointed bankruptcy supervisor.

In 2017, NIIK signed an agreement with Metafrax on the design and construction of the Ammonia-Carbamide-Melamine complex worth 16.2 billion rubles (over $257 million). The institute received an advance payment exceeding 30% of the contract amount.

As followed by the terms of the contract, construction had to be completed in 2021. However, NIIK faced difficulties and failed to meet the schedule. In July 2021, NIIK offered Metafrax to terminate the contract by agreement of the parties, which was done a month later. By this time, the construction of the complex was completed by 90%.

Then NIIK tried to get a return of a bank guarantee of 745 million rubles (almost $12 million) from Metafrax and Sberbank, but its application was left without consideration. Now NIIK’s debt to creditors, including Sberbank, exceeds 1.9 billion rubles (over $30 million).

The NIIK press-service noted that, in agreement with the bankruptcy trustee and its creditors, the institute continues to work, fulfill its contractual obligations to customers, sign new contracts, and hire new employees. According to the current workload, the institute is provided with work until mid-2023.