Our secrets are heavy – Newspaper Kommersant No. 220 (7421) dated 11/28/2022

In 2022, it is difficult to imagine a topic more discussed than the forks of import substitution — they are discussed at almost every forum and meeting. The general framework is clear: under unprecedented sanctions and in the face of problems with import supplies, the authorities want to achieve technological sovereignty, preferably through breakthrough technologies and without blindly copying foreign designs. Officials say they are ready to provide equally unprecedented support for such projects (see Kommersant of October 18). However, on the market, the cost of import substitution is estimated even higher – due to disruptions and rising costs of supplies and a shortage of qualified personnel (see Kommersant of November 16).

An illustration of what barriers manufacturers face in practice can be the recently posted draft resolution of the Ministry of Industry and Trade on regulation.gov.ru, dedicated to “transferring to the right”, as they say now, into an unclear future, the launch of one import-substituting production. The Moscow Endocrine Plant (MEZ) planned to launch the production of specific pharmaceutical substances in the Bryansk region, and in Moscow to produce medicines from them. In total – 993 jobs and 23 tons of active substances annually. Both projects have been implemented since 2019 at the expense of the State Pharmaceutical Program and financed from the budget.

However, it turned out that in 2022 the projects were de facto put on hold. The explanatory note clearly describes the reasons: the design time for imported equipment, which has no analogues in the Russian Federation, has increased, which is why the deadlines for obtaining conclusions on putting objects into operation have gone, during the approval period, the cost of the project has increased due to the rise in the cost of building materials – and the funds allocated from the budget was not enough to find a contractor for the construction of individual facilities. As a result, the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposes to redistribute the state funds allocated for this project in 2022 for other purposes by the end of the year, for example, for road construction, which is ahead of schedule, or support for bank guarantee products. In the next three years, according to the idea of ​​the department, the MEZ will receive the money due to it – in particular, the plant was agreed to increase the estimates. However, it is not worth excluding that the project will require a new revision of the cost.

The listed problems of pharmaceutical production are not unique and de facto form the “client path” for many investment projects. The exclusivity of the MEZ is that we are talking about the production of narcotic and psychotropic substances – and, obviously, the close attention of the security forces to it. However, there is no way without it now: the priorities of import substitution often coincide with the lists of dual-use or limited-access products – be it pharmaceuticals, radio electronics, communications, engine building, and even IT systems.