Intel’s Russian operations resulted in nil profit last year as a result of sanctions and restrictions imposed within the country by Western governments following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago, according to a recent Abachy report.
In a similar vein to its rocky year globally, the company’s two Russian entities, Intel AO and Intel Technologies, operated at a loss last year.
More broadly, the entire Intel business saw revenue drop by 14% to $54.2 billion in its financial year 2023, down from $63.1 billion in 2022.
Intel in Russia may as well not exist
Having boasted 741 employees in 2022, Intel AO reported just one employee and director last financial year – Alina Klushina. Intel Technologies, previously operating with 47 employees on the books, also ended up with just Klushina remaining.
In the weeks and months that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Intel started to wind down operations in the country to support affected citizens and adhere to newly imposed sanctions. However, more recently the company started to offer certain driver downloads on its Russian site, which it said was in line with fulfilling its warranty obligations.
Besides being a commercial opportunity for the California-based company, Russia also served as an important home for its Nizhny Novgorod research and development center – a site that became known for its work in software, AI, machine vision, 5G and IoT. After a 2020 revamp, the site alone employed around 1,000 workers.
Moreover, Intel’s cessation of trade in the country has not had the effect the company and sanctioning governments had hoped, with Russian customers still largely able to import from countries that have not imposed such sanctions.
