OREANDA-NEWS. March 14, 2011. Prime Minister of Belarus Mikhail Myasnikovich met with Chairman of the Board of Sberbank of Russia German Gref.

Speaking about Sberbank’s operations in Belarus, Mikhail Myasnikovich noted that he is satisfied with its activities as well as with the operation of its Belarusian subsidiary, BPS-Bank.

“I have looked through the agreements between Belarus and Sberbank and I should say everything runs in due course,” Belarus' Premier said.

He believes that banks should get involved in the implementation of the Union State projects. In particular, BPS-Bank could be more aggressive in implementing certain projects within the Union State and on European and Eurasian markets, while the bank implements projects predominantly in Belarus. "I believe BPS bank can take part both in foreign and joint projects,” Myasnikovich said.

Belarus is ready to consider the proposals of Sberbank of Russia on the allocation of a loan for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Belarus, Belarus’ Prime Minster said.
“The session of the Council of Ministersof the Union State, which is scheduled for 15 March, is expected to see the signing of the basic documents on the construction of the Belarusian NPP and on the parallel operation of our power supply systems,” Mikhail Myasnikovich said. He added that the details and terms of this agreement will be discussed in a talk with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

In turn, German Gref said that the Sberbank of Russia is ready to participate in the privatization in Belarus.

A reminder, Sberbank of Russia had set up an investment company in Belarus. “We are ready to increase our presence here and take an active part in the privatization,” German Gref said. “That is why we are prepared for it (privatization). I think our experience can be useful for Belarus,” he said.

On the whole, he commended the results of the BPS-Bank operations since it became the subsidiary of Sberbank. “We have exceeded the forecasts. It concerns both the development of leasing and our financing in Belarus,” Gref said. A series of agreements with Sberbank has been already implemented. For instance, Belarus has floated Eurobonds in cooperation with Sberbank of Russia. Now Belarus has a borrower status and its own credit history.

The demand for the Belarusian bonds in the Russian market is high, German Gref said.

“If Belarus decides on another issue of bonds in Russian rubles, and this decision is being mulled over now, we will take all efforts to make the issue as successful as previous ones,” German Gref said.

In 2010-2011 Sberbank of Russia was one of the banks that organized the floatation of USD1.8 billion of Belarusian Eurobonds and RUB7 billion worth of sovereign bonds of the Republic of Belarus.

“We see that the demand on Belarusian bonds is high. We also see that Belarus takes a responsible approach to its obligations. It, of course, makes investors confident,” stressed the Chairman of the Board of Sberbank.

Sberbank of Russia is ready to implement another set of big projects in Belarus, German Gref said.

“We see the potential for further cooperation. We are considering a set of big projects in credit extension and investment activities of major Belarusian companies, as well as in the construction industry and commercial property,” German Gref said.

He noted though that Sberbank has no plans for the horizontal expansion on the Belarusian market. “We are happy about our acquisition of BPS-Bank: the quality of loan portfolio in Belarus is the highest of all the other countries where we operate. Last year BPS-Bank doubled its assets,” German Gref said.

“Today the limits through BPS-Bank exceed USD 700 million. The aggregate amount of open and utilized limit for Belarus stands at about USD 2.8 billion. It is considerably higher than we expected,” he said.

At the same time, Sberbank has plans to expand its presence on the Belarusian market. German Gref informed that at the meeting with the President of Belarus he discussed the expansion of Sberbank operations in Belarus, including the investment activity and privatization.