PJSC “RPC United Wagon Company” announces its intention to float on the Moscow exchange

Public Joint Stock Company “Research and Production Corporation United Wagon Company” (“RPC UWC” or the “Company”), the market leader in innovative railcar building in Russia, today announces its intention to conduct an initial public offering (“IPO” or the “Offering”) of its ordinary shares (the “Shares”) with listing on the Moscow Exchange.

Details of the Offering:

• RPC UWC intends to offer at least 10% of its Shares during this Offering, including approximately 5% of primary Shares will be offered by United Wagon Plc (Jersey), the Company’s sole shareholder and a fully-owned subsidiary of ICT Group.
• The proceeds of the Offering will be used to finance RPC UWC’s business activities and development.
• The Offering is scheduled for the end of April 2015, the final date is subject to approval by the Company’s Board of Directors.
• The share price will be announced prior to the Offering.
• The Offering consists of an offering of the Shares through the facilities of the Moscow Exchange pursuant to its settlement procedures.
• RPC UWC expects its Shares to be admitted to trading on the Moscow Exchange in the First Level quotation list.
• VTB Capital is the global coordinator, joint lead manager and joint bookrunner of the Offering. Otkritie Financial Group is joint lead manager and joint bookrunner.

Roman Savushkin, Chief Executive Officer of RPC United Wagon Company, commented:

“Our IPO represents a major milestone in the development of the Company. We began our operations approximately ten years ago by pioneering the production of innovative freight railcars together with our international partners, and this was a cutting-edge concept for the Russian railcar industry. Our next step was to construct our plant, which conformed to the highest international standards. Today we are one of the largest and most advanced transport engineering companies in Europe. We are the national leader in building innovative railcars, which, thanks to their substantial economic benefits, are in increasing demand in the railway market and are steadily replacing the production of old railcars in Russia and across the 1520mm gauge area. Our flexible, vertically integrated business model ensures that our business remains robust in a volatile market environment and provides continued growth despite the unstable market conditions.

We expect that the Offering will further strengthen RPC UWC’s position in the rail industry and expand our access to the capital markets. We remain focused on increasing our market share and improving business efficiency to enhance the Company’s value.”

About Company

RPC UWC is a leader in building innovative railcars in the 1520mm gauge area. Founded in 2012, RPC UWC is an integrated rail holding, which develops, manufactures and maintains new generation railcars and also provides leasing and transportation services. In 2014, the Company produced 9,600 innovative railcars, making it one of Russia’s largest innovative railcar manufacturers. As at the end of the first quarter of 2015, RPC UWC’s fleet under management stood at more than 21,000 railcars.

Innovative freight railcars have improved technical and economic characteristics that increase the efficiency of freight traffic for rolling stock owners and shippers. RPC UWC produces new generation railcars equipped with Barber bogies with 25t axle loads. Features of this type of rolling stock include greater capacity, longer service life, lower operational costs and a separate tariff system for empty runs, which mean that these railcars have significant economic advantages compared to railcars equipped with standard bogies.

Manufacturing innovative railcars is one of the most promising segments of the Russian railcar building market. Market experts expect nearly 35% of the Russian Federation’s railcar fleet to be written off between 2015 and 2022, and this, in conjunction with the reduced economic efficiency of the older wagons, means there will be stable demand for new generation rolling stock. Government measures supporting innovative railcar building, including a special tariff system for empty runs and subsidies for purchasing innovative wagons, are additional drivers behind the growing demand for new generation rolling stock.

RPC UWC has the most advanced production facilities in the industry. Joint Stock Company Tikhvin Freight Car Building Plant, located in Tikhvin in the Leningrad region, is the Company’s production centre. The total investment in the construction of the plant amounted to US$ 1.5 billion. The plant’s current annual production capacity is 16,000 innovative railcars (increasing to 22,000 by 2016) and 30,000 car-sets. The plant has an integrated process system which combines railcar assembly and castings production lines with a high level of automation, efficiency and versatility. Other parts of the UWC rail holding include LLC NPC Springs, which meets the Company’s need for heavy-duty rail springs for innovative bogies and its own engineering centre. RPC UWC also has a network of over 40 service centres across Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus.

RPC UWC’s business model enables the Company to promote its products to the market through multiple channels, meaning it has effective operations in all market conditions. Long-term operational leasing is a key element of UWC’s business. RPC UWC provides its leasing services through RAIL1520, the common brand for UWC’s leasing companies and one of Russia’s five largest lessors in this space. Besides leasing, RPC UWC makes direct sales of new generation wagons through its own transport company, LLC Vostok1520, which also provides rolling stock operating services. Through the combination of leasing and making direct sales, the utilisation rate of RPC UWC’s fleet is nearly 100%. The railcars that RPC UWC sells or leases are mainly used for export freight traffic, which is a rapidly growing area of freight transport.

In 2014, RPC UWC generated consolidated IFRS revenue of RUB 17,057 million, which is more than 5 times the figure for 2013. EBITDA grew to RUB 3,572 million in 2014, compared to RUB 1,403 million in the previous year. The EBITDA margin in 2014 was approximately 21%.

RPC United Wagon Company is focused on achieving its key strategic goals, which are to increase its market share and maximise the economic effect from operating innovative railcars. For this, the Company intends to launch new, value-added products. In the medium-term, RPC UWC plans to expand its range of innovative railcars to 60 models. The Company’s strategy also includes diversifying its client base by both by geography and industry, as well as developing its service centre network and its own expertise in operating rolling stock. Gradually enhancing operating efficiency is another key area of focus for RPC UWC.

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For more information about the Company, please visit www.uniwagon.com, or contact:

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