Seppo Remes / Photo by Jussi Nukari / Lehtikuva
Finnish businessman Seppo Remes, the co-owner of a Swedish company which invests in Russian electricity assets, says has been denied entry to Russia for the next five years after receiving a warning from the Federal Security Service, Russian publication Vedomosti has reported.
"I left for vacation on March 13, [and] before flying the FSB handed me an official warning about the inadmissibility of actions that create conditions for crime, the investigation of which is the responsibility of the FSB" Remes said.
The Directorate of Counterintelligence Support to Industrial Enterprises of the Economic Security Service of the FSB said it believes that Remes has been collecting the information in Russia about the top managers of energy companies with state participation, as well as was enquiring about their development plans.
However, the directorate said it was not aware of the fact that Remes collected or transmitted information containing state secrets. There are no charges of espionage, but according to the FSB, Remes’ actions "created the conditions for the committing of a crime."
Remes claimed that he could have been denied the entry to Russia because of the his criticism of the leadership of the Rosset company, adding that his criticism had been constructive.
Remes is one of the most prominent foreign investors in Russia. The funds he has been managing were among the first to purchase shares of OAO RAO UES (OAO Unified Energy System of Russia) after the announcement of the upcoming reform of the electricity industry.
Remes previously served on the board of directors of RAO UES, was a member of FGC, System Operator, OGK-6 RusHydro, RAO Energy System of East Group. To date, he is the member of the boards of Rosset, Rusnano, Sibur and Sollers.