Vitaly Kuznetsov has been appointed as the new CEO of Belaya Sfera-Construction, the management company of the Akvamir water park in Novosibirsk. The appointment took effect on July 23.

Kuznetsov is also a member of the board of directors of RATM-Holding, owned by Novosibirsk businessman Eduard Taran. Previously, he served as an advisor to the CEO for investments and development projects at Sibirskoe Steklo LLC, a subsidiary of the holding. Kuznetsov declined to comment on the reasons for the change in leadership.

Belaya Sfera-Construction, registered in Moscow in 2011, is owned by Arkady Tarabarin and Maxim Zubachev. In 2023, the company reported a revenue of 805 million rubles and a net profit of 80 million rubles.

The previous CEO, Natalya Mukhanova, the former Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Novosibirsk Region, was arrested in October, and Tarabrin is also under investigation. Attempts to contact Maxim Zubachev for comment were unsuccessful.

Prior to Kuznetsov’s appointment, Belaya Sfera had initiated liquidation proceedings, appointing Yulia Katysheva as the liquidator. However, the liquidation process was terminated on July 23, and the company’s status has been reactivated.

In December, the Arbitration Court of the Novosibirsk Region seized the accounts of Akvamir’s tenant in response to a lawsuit filed by VDT Stroy, the former owner of the building. VDT Stroy sought to recover over 177 million rubles from Belaya Sfera, including more than 164.8 million rubles in unpaid rent and 12.6 million rubles in unjust enrichment.

Eduard Taran, the Novosibirsk oligarch associated with RATM-Holding, was arrested in Moscow in October. Investigators allege that Taran and his associates embezzled at least 200 million rubles from the water park through a fraudulent scheme.