A FORMER GARBAGE OPERATOR FROM VOLGOGRAD IS UNDER THREAT OF BANKRUPTCY

The arbitration of the Volgograd region continues to receive claims for bankruptcy of the company "Sitimatik-Volgograd" (formerly called "Waste Management"). To date, several applications of creditors have already been considered by the court.

The former regional operator for the management of municipal solid waste (MSW) began its work in the region in January 2019. Initially, the agreement with the authorities assumed a 10-year term. However, the debt for recycling services has been growing in recent years, increasing from 190 million rubles in 2022 to 390 million in 2023.

Residents of the region began to bombard officials with complaints, and regulatory authorities to initiate administrative cases of offenses, issuing numerous prescriptions. As a result, the authorities initiated the procedure for changing the garbage operator.

On August 10, 2023, the Volga-Business and Industry of Cleanliness firms applied to arbitration with claims for bankruptcy of Sitimatik-Volgograd (case No. A12-19966/2023). In the first case, the amount of claims amounted to 22,777,712.46 rubles. The reason was the violation of the terms of the contract for the provision of paid services for the disposal of MSW.

At the same time, the defendant stated that he had already repaid the existing debt. However, on August 11, the company itself sent an application to the arbitration court, demanding to declare itself bankrupt. A few days later, on August 15, this claim was withdrawn.

On August 16, the court issued a ruling, setting the date for checking the application of Volga-Business for the beginning of September. On the same day, the companies "TransEcoLine" and "Spetsavtotrans" filed for bankruptcy of "Sitimatik-Volgograd". The next day, a similar application was sent to arbitration by the company "Sphere of Purity". All of them were accepted for production as claims for entry into case No. A12-19966/2023.

On September 12, the court refused to introduce a monitoring procedure for the Volga-Business claim, leaving the company's application without consideration. However, the court is still planning to check the validity of other statements. In particular, the hearing on the claim "Industry of Purity" is scheduled for October 12. Whether the former regional operator will be able to "fight off" several creditors at once is a big question.

Since August 1, the status of the operator for the disposal of MSW in the Volgograd region has passed to the company "Ecocenter", local media specify. At the same time, the former garbage operator continues to issue invoices for payment of debts incurred before August 2023. According to representatives of "Sitimatik-Volgograd", the company plans to collect the debts of legal entities in the amount of 390 million rubles forcibly. Local publications recommend residents of the region to conduct a reconciliation of calculations. In case of disagreement with the charges, you should be patient and apply to the Central District Court of Volgograd.