Lukashenko Has Started A New Stage Of The "cement Scam"
3- 30.12.2025, 10:15
- 3,806
The factories, which have already been invested billions of dollars, will again be helped from the pockets of Belarusians.
Cement plants will again be compensated for loan payments from the national budget in 2026. This follows from the decree of the Council of Ministers, published on the National Legal Internet Portal.
The matter concerns loans, issued by Belarusbank to two enterprises - Belarusian Cement Plant and Krichevcementoshefer. Next year, interest on these loans will be repaid at the expense of budget funds, writes "Zerkalo".
Ruble loans will be compensated at the refinancing rate. Interest on foreign currency loans will be compensated at a rate of more than 7%, while the transfers are provided for in rubles.
The total amount of the loan of the Belarusian cement plant is specified at the level of Br35.4 million, of which the principal debt is Br12.5 million "Krichevcementoshifer" owes the bank more than $65 million, of which $27.9 million is the principal debt.
How billions were invested in cement plants
While officials talk about attempts to get out of losses as successes of cement companies, the state (and thus taxpayers) spend billions of rubles year after year to support them.
In 2019, it was decided to provide support worth about 900 million dollars. But not all of these funds have already been allocated, as this form of assistance will continue, that is, the money for the plants is paid to banks gradually.
In April 2023, Alexander Lukashenko ordered to allocate support to some state enterprises at the expense of the state, increasing their authorized capital. Three cement plants received a total of 37.8 million rubles.
In 2019-2020, Krasnoselskstroymaterialy received about $4 million from the Ministry of Energy "for the purchase of technological equipment." The money was taken from the off-budget centralized investment fund, which is financed by the budget.
And the decision to allocate these funds was made shortly after the State Control Committee admitted that the modernization of cement plants, which cost the budget more than 1 billion rubles, did not bring the proper return. That is, seeing that the scheme of wasting budget funds does not help the plants to start working efficiently, officials continued to pour a lot of money into them.
It turns out that only from 2019 the amount of promised state support already provided exceeds 2.9 billion rubles. And this is without taking into account indirect forms of assistance: installment payments for energy sources or tax benefits. For example, in the same year of 2019, following Lukashenko's decision, the plants received tax benefits for dozens of years ahead.
In fact, state support for the cement industry has been provided for dozens of years. During this time, billions of dollars have been spent for these purposes.
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