Corporate governance

Overall strategic goal

It is in the public interest to provide the purposeful and efficient management of real estate that is strategically important for national security, necessary for state institutions to perform state functions, for the preservation of cultural heritage, for the development of state or municipal administrative territory, including the preservation and increase of their value. To ensure the efficient management of real estate not used for state functions.

Corporate governance model

The management model of SJSC “State Real Estate” has been developed in accordance with the good practice of corporate governance, separating strategic and operational management. The company is managed by the Shareholders' meeting, the Council and the Board. According to the Articles of Association of SRE, the Council of the company has four members and the Board of the company has three members.

In accordance with good management practices, the company has a Corporate Governance Policy. It is reviewed as necessary, but not less than once every three years.

The company's operations are determined by regulatory enactments and industry policy planning documents in the field of real estate alienation and construction, as well as regulatory enactments that regulate the handling of state property and financial resources. Pursuant to the general strategic goal, the medium-term operational strategy of SRE for 2023-2025 has been approved.

Shareholder of SRE

The capital shares (shares) of the State Joint Stock Company “State Real Estate” belong to the state of Latvia. The holder of state capital shares is the Ministry of Finance. Pursuant to the provisions of the Law On Governance of Capital Shares of a Public Person and Capital Companies, decisions are made by the State Secretary of the Ministry on behalf of the holder of capital shares.

Council

The Council represents the interests of the shareholder between meetings, as well as supervises the activities of the Board within the framework specified in regulatory enactments and the Articles of Association of SRE. According to the Articles of Association of SRE, the Council has four members. The work organisation of the Council is defined in its regulations (LV).

Janis Garisons

Chairperson of the Council

On 30 December 2019, he was appointed as a temporary Member of the Council and on 8 January 2020 he was elected as the Chairperson of the Council.

More than 20 years of experience in public administration. For almost nine past years J. Garisons held the position of the State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), while before that he held the positions of the MoD Policy Director and the MoD Crisis Management and Mobilisation Department Director. Prior to that, i.e. from 1997 to 2005, he worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) where he held such positions as the MoFA Security Department Director, the MoFA Head of the NATO and European Security Division, the MoFA Head of Regional Cooperation and Arms Control, and other positions.

J. Garisons has a Master’s Degree in Strategic Studies obtained at the U.S. Army War College and a Master’s Degree in History Science obtained at the History and Philosophy Faculty at the University of Latvia. He has attended training in the Geneva Security Policy Centre in Switzerland and also completed an anti-terrorism course in the USA. Since 2016, J. Garisons is serving in the National Guard.

Ieva Braunfelde

Member of the Council

On 30 December 2019, she was appointed as a temporary Member of the Council and on 20 October 2021 she was elected as the Deputy Chairperson of the Council.

Her previous work experience includes public administration, i.e. management of the administrative work of the Ministry of Finance. She is responsible for the development and coordination of the national real estate policy, as well as for the areas of public-private partnerships and public procurements. From May 2014 to present, I. Braunfelde has been the Head of the Administration of the Ministry of Finance.

She has a Master’s Degree in Legal Science and a Diploma for obtaining a Lawyer’s Qualification, as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics obtained at the University of Latvia. She has improved her professional skills by attending various courses on European Union related matters and also gained knowledge of international accounting and auditing standards, strengthening competences in the field of internal control and also skills in managing teams.

Raitis Nešpors

Member of the Council

Duration of the mandate: 01.01.2022–31.12.2026.

More than 15 years of experience in leading positions, i.e. he has held the position of the Chief Financial Officer and the Member of the Board of the oil product wholesale and retail company LLC (SIA) “Neste Latvia”. He continued his professional career in the field of real estate as the Managing Director and Chairperson of the Board of SIA “Resolution”, then as the Chairperson of the Board of LLC (SIA) “LASCO INVESTMENT”. From 2013 he was the Chief Financial Officer at LLC (SIA) “EAST-WEST TRANSIT”, but in 2016 he was appointed as the Member of the Council of SJSC “RIGA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT”. From 2017 to 2020, R. Nešpors held the position of the Chairperson of the Board of SJSC “Latvijas autoceļu uzturētājs”. Since April 2021, he is a Member of the Board of JSC “Pasažieru vilciens”.

R. Nešpors holds a Professional Master’s Degree in Business Administration and Enterprise and Organisation Management of the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance obtained at the BA School of Business and Finance.

Management Board

The board is the executive body of the state capital company, which manages and represents the capital company jointly. According to the Articles of Association of SRE, the Board has three members. The Board makes decisions on all issues regarding capital, the company's operations, except for those that are within the competence of the Council or the Shareholders’ meeting The work organisation of the Board is defined in its regulations (LV)/

Renars Griskevics

Chairperson of the Board since 6 January 2020

Financial management, investment financing, and supervision.

Duration of the mandate: 06.01.2020–05.01.2025.

Key competences in the context of sustainability: own labour force, value chains, communities, industry, governance.

Joined the company in January of 2020. More than 10 years of professional experience in leading positions at the structural units of the construction manufacturer CEMEX in various countries. From 2022 he is a member of the PuRE-net (Public Real Estate Network) management committee. Since October 2021, he holds the position of the Chairperson of the Council of SJSC “Latvijas autoceļu uzturētājs”. R. Griškevičs has obtained a Master’s Degree in European Studies and a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management at the University of Latvia. In addition, he has attended local and international training and also professional training of board members at the Baltic Institute of Corporate Governance.

Andris Varna

Member of the Board since 1 October 2017

Real estate portfolio management and development, customer relations management.

Duration of the mandate: 01.10.2017–30.09.2022 and 01.10.2022–30.09.2027.

Key competences in the context of sustainability: industry, environment, climate, consumer.

Appointed as a Member of the Board in October 2017, re-elected in 2022. Previously he held the position of the Head of Real Estate and Facility Management at SEB banka (AS) JSC in Latvia and the Baltics, implementing the optimisation of SEB real estate lease portfolio and the transition to a modern working environment. He holds a professional higher education degree in economics and also a professional higher education degree in business and management obtained at Riga Technical University. A. Vārna is a Certified Property Manager, CPM®, and a member of the UK Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM).

Jelena Gavrilova

Member of the board since 1 May 2022

Implementation of real estate development projects and construction process management, customer relations management.

Duration of the mandate: 01.05.2022–01.05.2027.

Key competences in the context of sustainability: industry, end-users, environment.

Working at the company since 2022. Previously, she managed LLC (SIA) “SEB Līzings”, participating in major public procurements, as well as was the Head of Real Estate Financing Department at SEB banka (AS) JSC, Senior Consultant and Analyst at SEB banka (AS) JSC and SEB AB (Sweden). She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics obtained at the University of Latvia, she has the diploma of the Master of Business Administration (MBA) obtained at the Riga Business School, as well as certificates in AML Financial Programme Certificate and the IMD Business School Certificate – Changing Employee Behaviour.

Internal audit

Today, well-functioning internal control systems are becoming increasingly important in business. The purpose of the internal audit department is to strengthen the value of SJSC “State Real Estate” and to help the company's council, board and heads of structural units to achieve the set strategic and business goals more effectively with an independent and objective assessment.

The internal audits allow one to assess the compliance of SRE processes with the requirements of regulatory enactments, operational objectives and the efficiency of the company's operations. They help to develop proposals for the improvement of the internal control system, thus improving the operation of SRE as a whole.

The Internal Audit Department of SRE is independent and directly subordinated to the Council of the company. It is not involved in the direct performance of the functions of SRE.

Dividend policy

The annual dividend rate set in the 2023–2025 medium-term operating strategy of State Joint Stock Company (VAS) ‘Valsts nekustamie īpašumi’ (VNĪ) is 64% of the profits for the reporting year.

The VNĪ dividend rate is determined through special legal regulations.

The minimum dividend rate of 64% of the profits for the reporting year is set in Section 3.1 of Cabinet Regulation No 72 ‘Procedure for predicting, determining, and effecting charges for the use of state-owned capital’ of 25 January 2022 (Procedure for predicting, determining, and effecting charges for the use of state-owned capital (likumi.lv).

In accordance with Section 7 of that Cabinet Regulation, the Cabinet may set a lower dividend percentage rate if any of the following conditions applies:

if is necessary to provide long-term investments for achieving the overall strategic goals, financial goals, or non-financial goals of the company, taking into account the field of business of the company, its financial standing, and possible alternatives for raising the funds;
it is necessary to prevent a threat to the sustainable development of the state-owned capital directly or indirectly invested in the company by the state, and to maintain the competitiveness of the company;
in special cases, in order to ensure the fulfilment of requirements set in the laws and regulations of the European Union or Republic of Latvia, or in international treaties binding on Latvia, the company must in the coming reporting years take measures to foster improvements in the quality and availability of the services pertinent to the fields of business of the company, which necessitates additional financial investments or a reduction of service fees for the users of the services.