The Far East is waiting for investors in technology – Kommersant

The effect of preferential regimes supported the inflow of investments to the Far East in 2022, however, the sanctions complicated the implementation of projects – investors faced both problems in logistics and restrictions on the supply of equipment. Such conclusions were made by the participants of the Collegium of the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East held on Friday. Now the department is planning to develop international priority development areas (TOR) – to attract partners in the creation of industries on the territory of the Russian Federation, but according to the standards of the technology supplier country. The creation of such a zone in one of the regions bordering China will be discussed next week during the visit of Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin to China.

The launch of investment projects in the Far East continued in 2022 – 178 new enterprises were built, but investors faced delays in 35 projects due to sanctions. As a result, investments in the region’s economy deferred to 2023-2025 amounted to 150 billion rubles, Deputy Prime Minister and presidential envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District Yury Trutnev said at the collegium of the Ministry for the Development of the Far East.

According to the Corporation for the Development of the Far East, the number of residents of the TOP last year increased by 530 companies. In total, in 2022, residents of all preferential regimes in the region invested 792 billion rubles in the creation of new enterprises, the total investment is estimated at 3.4 trillion rubles. (3.3 thousand projects received state support). The volume of taxes, insurance premiums and customs duties paid since 2015 (when the incentives for investors began) amounted to 234 billion rubles, budget expenditures and benefits to residents over the same period amounted to 179 billion rubles. Thus, the head of the Ministry for the Development of the Far East, Alexei Chekunkov, said that the invested funds brought almost 55 billion rubles to the budget. arrived. According to him, the growth rate of investment in fixed capital in the region is more than three times faster than the national one. A fifth of the investments were directed to mining, the rest – to processing, engineering, shipbuilding, logistics, transport, agriculture and tourism.

The department is also counting on attracting foreign (primarily friendly Asian investors) – for this, the International ASEZ project has been developed. The creation of such a zone is planned before the end of 2023 – this issue will be discussed during the visit of Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin to China next week, Alexei Chekunkov said. It is assumed that the ASEZ can be created in one of the regions bordering China, where there is an appropriate infrastructure, these are the Jewish Autonomous Region, the Amur Region, Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories. Taking into account the significant benefits for the project, “serious work is to be done in coordination with all departments,” the minister added.

The emergence of international ASEZs should mitigate the effects of sanctions on Russian companies’ access to foreign technologies. Within such a territory, not only Russian, but also foreign legislation will apply – in particular, construction and industrial standards of the technology supplier country will be recognized. The regime provides for the expansion of tax benefits: a zero rate of taxes on profits, property, land and transport for 20 years. But not everyone can become residents of such PDAs, but only companies that produce high-tech products according to a list determined by the government.

The possibility of switching to a “single ASEZ” regime is also being discussed – this approach is expedient, since changes in the boundaries of existing territories occur constantly, Natalya Trunova, auditor of the Accounts Chamber, said at the board meeting. In total, 140 acts have already been adopted to expand the created TOPs for new investors. It should be noted that the “single ASEZ” regime will mean the actual distribution of benefits to the entire region, which raises objections from the Ministry of Finance due to the potential reduction in tax revenues in the context of an increased budget deficit.

Tatyana Edovina