Russian Arctic investment booming – official

Hundreds of projects are expected to be implemented in the region

The launch of a special economic zone with a wide range of tax breaks and other business incentives in the Russian Arctic has helped to attract significant investment, First Deputy Minister for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic, Gadzhimagomed Guseynov, has said.

According to the official, who was addressing a conference dedicated to development of the region last week, over 760 projects with total investments of 1.75 trillion rubles ($18.4 billion) could be realized due to the mechanisms of state support approved in 2020.

This would help in creating around 40,000 jobs, with more than 13,000 positions having been already set up, he said.

Guseynov highlighted that in terms of investment volume, the mining industry ranks first, with 44 projects worth 862 billion rubles ($9.4 billion) currently being implemented in the region. There are also 15 projects in the petrochemical industry, with 207 billion rubles ($2.2 billion) in investments. He also named services, construction, and tourism among highly prospective sectors.

READ MORE: Russia’s economic future lies in Arctic, minister tells RT

Adopted in July 2020, the Russian state support law includes a number of incentives for Arctic zone investors, including tax breaks, partial compensation of insurance fees, and severance tax exemption equal to the amount of infrastructural investments. Apart from federal incentives, investors get various regional exemptions on profit and property tax up to 100%.

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