Genser and Rosgosstrakh (RGS) have created a joint venture with the goal of opening 30-40 car centers for the sale of foreign cars in Russian regions within three years, Genser co-owner Igor Ponomarev told Vedomosti. He estimates the investment in this project at $100 million. According to him, Rosgosstrakh, which has experience working in the regions, will support the project with personnel and finances. Genser itself plans to use the funds received from the sale of shares to the Volga River One Capital Partners fund (analysts estimated the deal at more than $30 million) for regional expansion.

In three years, Genser expects to have one of the highest-quality regional dealer networks in Russia, Ponomarev adds. He did not disclose any other details, and Rosgosstrakh did not comment at all yesterday on its participation in the project or its interest in the automobile market. However, an employee of the company involved in the preparation of the project reported that the dealer and the insurer own equal shares in the enterprise. Volga River One Capital Partners expects that active regional expansion will have a positive effect on Genser's capitalization, says Alexey Panferov, managing partner of NR Growth Consulting (NRG), which represents the interests of the investment fund. At the same time, he notes that the details of the regional development project are still being worked out.

The alliance between the insurer and the dealer looks quite reasonable, because in this case the insurer receives a guaranteed volume of work – cars sold by the partner, notes Igor Ivanov, deputy general director of the insurance company RESO-Garantiya. An employee of another insurance company believes that RGS is thus trying to improve its position in the most profitable part of the auto insurance market – comprehensive insurance, where its share is currently small.

According to the Automobile Manufacturers Committee of the European Business Club, sales of foreign cars in Russia increased by 74% in the first five months of 2007, with the growth rate of sales in the regions significantly outpacing Moscow. This makes one think about creating a broad regional network of all major Russian dealers. The Atlant-M and Inkom-Auto groups of companies have promised to open 50 of their own centers in Russia in the next few years. The largest automobile retailer, Avtomir, has already opened eight regional branches and one joint venture and expects to add two more by the end of the year, said Sergey Vyatchenkov, director of regional development for the group. At the same time, Avtomir prefers to open its own branches because this is a more profitable and reliable development option, he adds.

Rosgosstrakh to help Genser