Governor Andrey Chibis held the first meeting of the Investment Committee of the Murmansk Region. Representatives of the regional government, business, and resource supplying organizations discussed the implementation of the investment standard, current support measures, completed and ongoing projects, and the solution of complex issues. 

 
The head of the Murmansk region recalled that, on the instructions of President Vladimir Putin, this year the Regional Investment Standard was developed and successfully approved together with the federal government. The institute of investment commissioners became part of it, and the investment committee will now meet regularly.  
 
"We launched the mechanism of investment commissioners even before the implementation of the investment standard, and now this successful practice will be implemented in all territories of the Russian Federation. The task of the investment committee will be to simplify the conditions for doing business," the head of the region emphasized. 
 
The governor emphasized that the region pays great attention to creating a favorable investment climate, and economic development is a key task. 
 
"This is directly related to how the Arctic is changing for people. These are new jobs, additional income directed to the social sphere, involving businesses in additional social obligations in order to improve the comfort of life in the conditions of the Far North. As a result of this work, over the past 4 years, GRP per capita has increased by 2.5 times, the growth rate of investment in fixed assets was 116% - this is the second place in terms of rates in the Northwestern Federal District. "Over 4 years, investors have invested almost 900 billion rubles in the development of the region," the governor listed.  
 
Among the significant investment projects being implemented in the region, the governor named the development of the Murmansk transport hub.  
 
"It was at a frozen stage, but with the support of President Vladimir Putin and the Government, funding was received, a new railway on the western shore of the Kola Bay and a new port are in the final stage of construction. This will allow us to double the transshipment of goods through the port of Murmansk by 2027 - up to 110 million tons per year," the governor noted. 
 
Another important project for the region is gasification. "The issue has been thoroughly considered by the President, all detailed decisions have been made. Now we are moving to the stage of practical implementation. And this will have a radically positive effect on the economy of the region: the Novatek company has already announced the implementation of the unique Murmansk LNG project," Andrei Chibis emphasized.  
 
In addition, the head of the region recalled that there are two preferential regimes for entrepreneurs in the Murmansk region: the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation and the priority development area "Capital of the Arctic". 

"We currently have 219 residents with a total investment volume of about 386 billion rubles. The Murmansk region is the leader in the number of residents," Andrey Chibis commented. They have already created almost 4.5 thousand jobs, and in the future there will be 11 thousand. 
 
"We continue to work on the implementation of the municipal investment standard. This mechanism is aimed at creating comfortable and transparent conditions for business, equal rights to carry out investment activities, and will also improve the interaction of investors with government bodies, resource suppliers and authorized organizations," said Svetlana Panfilova, Minister of Arctic Development and Economy of the Murmansk Region.  
 
During the meeting, successful practices of implementing the investment commissioner mechanism were considered using the example of the Kola District, where most of the residents of the "Arctic Capital" priority development area and 42 residents of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation are located. These include a number of farming and tourism projects, for example, the Fishing Village was created in Teriberka, a fish store of the Murman SeaFood company was opened, and 5 grocery stores are being built, including in sparsely populated areas. An important element of the work was financial support for entrepreneurs, for example, within the framework of the "Governor's Start" program. There are 1,453 small and medium-sized businesses operating in the Kola District; since 2019, the number of individual entrepreneurs has doubled – there are already 907 of them.

"Whatever the area of ​​the project, we provide support at all stages of implementation. As the investment commissioner of the Kola District Administration, I personally monitor the progress of each initiative, we work with businesses in constant dialogue, so there is a logical result," emphasized Alexander Likholat and thanked Governor Andrey Chibis and colleagues from the government for their support.

During the meeting, Oleg Mikhailov, Executive Director of JSC Kovdorsky GOK, presented the investment project "Development of the Kovdorsky Mining and Processing Plant", implemented within the framework of providing an investment tax deduction for profit tax - a new mechanism introduced in the region in 2022.

"As part of the project, it is planned to provide conditions for continuing the development of the Kovdorsky deposit to an absolute mark of minus 620 meters, which will extend the period of effective operation of the plant," Oleg Mikhailov noted. 

"Thanks to our well-coordinated work, an agreement for more than 100 billion rubles was signed to modernize production and continue developing the Kovdorskoye field at deeper horizons. A quarter of the specified amount has already been invested. And these investments will extend the plant's operation until at least 2047. Let me remind you that without them, the enterprise's work could have ended in 4 years," Andrey Chibis emphasized.

The head of the region recalled that all investments mean new jobs. "It is fundamentally important that young people understand what opportunities we have, have reliable information about where to study and what areas are in demand. Almost all large companies are involved in career guidance projects together with our Ministry of Education. And we are already seeing an increase in the working-age population," Andrey Chibis emphasized.  

In addition, a number of complex issues were considered during the meeting, including technological connection to power supply networks as part of the implementation of investment projects. One of the issues was resolved right at the meeting - connecting the investor "Russian Salmon" to electricity.

/ Ministry of Information Policy of the Murmansk Region /