Russia seeks to label US-based NCH Capital as extremist over its refusal to sell a Russian agribusiness holding

Russia is preparing to designate the U.S. investment company NCH Capital Inc., which owns the major Russian agribusiness group AgroTerra, as an extremist organization. The corresponding lawsuit was submitted to the Tverskoy District Court of Moscow on December 9. The company was founded by U.S. citizen of Ukrainian origin George Rohr, who, along with Austrian citizen Maurice Tabacinic, is listed in the case materials.

The lawsuit emerged amid Russian media reports that NCH Capital is refusing to sell AgroTerra, despite interest previously expressed by the state-owned bank VTB. The claim, filed by the Russian Deputy Prosecutor General, demands a ban on the activities of what is described as an “extremist organization” on Russian territory, applying the provisions of the law “On Countering Extremist Activity.”

AgroTerra is NCH’s key asset in Russia. Established in 2008, the holding managed around 24 agricultural enterprises across seven regions: Kursk, Lipetsk, Oryol, Penza, Ryazan, Tambov, and Tula. As of 2023, the company controlled approximately 265,000 hectares of arable land.

AgroTerra produced wheat, soybeans, sunflower, rapeseed, sugar beets, and other crops. The holding was involved in crop cultivation, storage, and sales, and also provided services to regional farmers — including procurement, financing, and logistics. Beyond farmland, the company’s assets included grain elevators and processing infrastructure with storage capacity of up to 500,000 tons.

In April 2024, by decree of Vladimir Putin, AgroTerra’s assets were transferred to the temporary management of Rosimushchestvo, giving the state effective control over the key companies of the group. This included Capital AgroFinance LLC, AgroTerra LLC, AgroSystem LLC, and AgroSystem-Regions LLC — essentially all major legal and operational units of the holding.

Tags: NCH Capital, Russia, USA