As part of a working dinner with diplomats from Latin America, the Middle East and Southeast Asia, the head of the region, Andrei Chibis, presented the investment potential of the Murmansk region. The event was also attended by Ambassador at Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nikolai Korchunov, representatives of large companies operating in the Russian Arctic.
“On behalf of the Murmansk region and the regional government, I welcome you to the Kola Arctic. I think that as a result of your trip we will find new points of mutual growth and niches for cooperation. For our part, we will provide the necessary support to business projects that will be useful for the development of the Murmansk region,” Andrey Chibis greeted the guests.
Among the advantages of the region, the governor highlighted direct access to the World Ocean and the Northern Sea Route without passing through international straits, proximity to St. Petersburg and Moscow, a deep-water ice-free port, and a developed system of roads and railways.
“The port of Murmansk is the base port for the Northern Sea Route; the volume of transshipment at the end of last year exceeded 56 million tons. Despite all the restrictions and sanctions pressure, it is one of the five largest ports in Russia in terms of transshipment volume. In addition, to develop our logistics potential, with the support of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the federal government, we are implementing the “Comprehensive Development of the Murmansk Transport Hub” project. By 2030, the volume of cargo transshipment is expected to increase to 80 million tons. MTU, the new port “Lavna” is in the active stage of construction, the readiness of key facilities is more than 80%, the launch of the working movement is planned for the end of this year,” noted Andrey Chibis.
Andrey Chibis emphasized that strategic projects are actively developing in the region: the construction of a terminal for transshipment of Tuloma mineral fertilizers, the creation of a container terminal and many others. Another important component of the economy of the Murmansk region is the resource base. The governor also noted that large reserves of rare earth reserves are concentrated in the Kola Arctic. Thus, 50% of Russia’s lithium reserves are located in the region. This year we started developing two lithium deposits. The governor emphasized that companies in the Murmansk region continue to invest in the development of fields.
“Another important project is the gasification of the region; work is underway to design a gas pipeline. At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, a corresponding agreement was signed with the head of Gazprom. Gasification will make it possible to locate the production of liquefied natural gas on our territory. Such projects have already been publicly announced by NOVATEK,” the governor said.
Another important area in the economy of the Murmansk region is the fishing industry.
“We have 150 companies, 7.5 thousand employees, and aquaculture is actively developing. Our companies invest in capacity development. The “Udarnik” terminal with full service for servicing fishing vessels and delivering fish products is in the active stage of implementation,” noted the head of the region.
Andrey Chibis highlighted another important development factor – electricity.
“We have the necessary power reserve to accommodate new production facilities, 60% of the electricity is generated by the Kola Nuclear Power Plant, and it is planned that by 2035 a completely new station will be created to replace the existing one. Also, at the beginning of the year, we introduced a unique project – a wind farm, which generates electricity and sends it in transit to the unified energy system of our country,” said Andrey Chibis.
The governor emphasized that the Murmansk region is the leader in the number of residents in the Arctic zone.
One of the most important projects being implemented in the region is the Center for the Construction of Large-Capacity Offshore Structures of the NOVATEK Company, which is an anchor resident of the Capital of the Arctic ASEZ.
Separately, Andrei Chibis highlighted education and training for the Arctic.
“Another point of growth is the development of tourism. You can relax with us all year round. Each season is attractive to different categories of tourists, the flow is stable. Last year we were visited by 540 thousand guests. These are only those who stayed at the hotel for more than three days; in fact, of course, there are more of them. Tourism is a strong segment for the development of our economy, we are investing in infrastructure, new projects and routes are emerging. The portrait of our tourist is a young, active person who is interested in the unique northern nature with character,” concluded the head of the region.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Peru to the Russian Federation Juan Genaro del Campo Rodriguez noted that the Murmansk region has large-scale potential and developed infrastructure. He expressed confidence that investors from all over the world will be interested in our strategic region.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Colombia Hector Isidro Arenas Neira noted that participation in such an educational trip to the most important region of the Arctic zone is a great honor. He emphasized that Russia is actively participating in the Arctic Council and highlighted the importance of the Arctic for the development of the whole world.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Mexican States Eduardo Villegas Mejias expressed confidence in establishing ties for interaction with the Murmansk region.
As part of the working trip, the ambassadors will visit production sites of Russian enterprises, get acquainted with the main attractions of the city of Murmansk, and visit the villages of Rybachy and Murmashi. The event will take place as part of the plan for Russia"s chairmanship of the Arctic Council. The operator of the chairmanship events is the Roscongress Foundation.
The business program includes visits by diplomats to the Center for the Construction of Large-Capacity Offshore Structures (TSSKMS), the headquarters of maritime operations of FSUE Atomflot and the branch of MMC Norilsk Nickel.
Russia chaired the Arctic Council from 2021 to 2023. The powers of the chairman were transferred to Norway during the 13th session of this international organization, which took place on May 11 in Salekhard. In total, about 90 different events took place under the chairmanship: forums, conferences, round tables, championships, festivals and sports competitions. The events took place in all nine regions of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. The events were divided into 11 thematic blocks, covering all promising areas of development of the territories of northern latitudes. The plan for chairmanship of the Arctic Council from the very beginning was calculated until August 2023, so the Russian side will hold a number of events designed to promote socio-economic development, preserve the ecology of northern latitudes and scientific study of the Arctic.
/ Ministry of Information Policy of the Murmansk Region /
