Presidential economic adviser Andrei Illarionov certainly knows how to stir up the political establishment. Even Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov is not immune to Illarionov's verbal attacks; but Anatoly Chubais, CEO of Russian Joint Energy Systems (RJES), is surely Illarionov's favorite target. Illarionov is a staunch opponent of the horizontal division of RJES. It was at his insistence that the State Council took an interest in electricity sector reforms, and even set up a working panel chaired by Tomsk Governor Viktor Kress. Illarionov wanted this, and he wants even more.
"What is happening within RJES nowadays is a national problem, a national threat, and a national disgrace," he said in Irkutsk. Illarionov declared yesterday that no other Russian company had seen its share price fall so drastically over the last eighteen months (RJES shares have dropped by 60%). He also mentioned that no other Russian company of this scale and strategic importance had seen its capital fall by $6 billion over the last two years. The conclusion was evident. "In any other country, with losses such as these, all the company's executives would have resigned," Illarionov said.
Commenting on Illarionov's criticism, Aleksei Trapeznikov of the RJES Board said: "The company reported a loss of 14 billion rubles in 1999 and profits of 41.696 billion rubles in 2001. This trend earned RJES a fairly high rating from Standards & Poor's." Trapeznikov admitted that capital had fallen, but attributed this to "a general decline in global markets, the Duma's delays in passing the package of bills on restructuring RJES, and all sorts of rumors and speculations." In other words, Illarionov himself is to blame.
Illarionov says he has a solution to the problems: the resignation of Anatoly Chubais. Firstly, if Chubais retains his position despite the losses reported by the company, this "indicates that shareholders - above all the largest shareholder, the state - and their interests are being ignored." Secondly, the government "supported the RJES management" a year ago, but the situation is different now; the government is "more reserved and attentive with regard to what is happening at RJES." Finally, Illarionov all but urged the RJES Board to make use of a certain clause in its regulations and replace its chief executive.
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