The territory of growth: why investors prefer investments in the Far East
Investments in the economy of the Far East are noticeably ahead of the national average, said Yuri Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister and Presidential Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District. Over the past decade, about 20 trillion rubles have been invested in the development of the region. Izvestia analyzed which sectors of the region's economy attract the largest volume of investments, what are the main difficulties faced by investors in the region, and what solutions are proposed to overcome them.
Allocation of investments
The maximum investment fell on the petrochemical industry — about 1.9 trillion rubles, followed by the mining industry — 1.7 trillion rubles and logistics — about 600 billion rubles, the press service of the Ministry of the Far East told Izvestia. Significant investments are also directed to development and energy.
"The three largest industries account for about 76% of the total amount invested in government-supported projects. The largest projects, in particular, are the Baimsky GOK in the Chukotka Autonomous Region, the Amur Gas Processing Plant and the Amur Gas Chemical Complex in the Amur Region, and the Malmyzhsky GOK in the Khabarovsk Territory," the ministry said.
Projects in the shipbuilding, aviation, and mechanical engineering industries, as well as in tourism, agriculture, fishing, aquaculture, and other fields, are actively developing in the region. Over the past decade, the Far Eastern Federal District has surpassed the national average: the growth rate of investments is 2.6 times higher, mining is more than three times higher, housing is 1.6 times higher, and the volume of construction work is more than three times higher.
The largest projects are the modernization of the BAM and Trans—Siberian Railway, the construction of a bridge across the Amur River and the development of port infrastructure, Dmitry Zemlyansky, director of the IPEI Presidential Academy's Research Center for Spatial Analysis and Regional Diagnostics, said in an interview with Izvestia. At the same time, many investments, including Russian Railways projects, are formally considered private, but are implemented with significant government support.
The nuances of investing
The main difficulties of investors are related to the lack of qualified personnel, high costs and limited infrastructure, which is being solved through support measures and integrated development of the region, Ivan Abramov, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Economic Policy, told Izvestia. As one of the steps to improve the investment environment, International Territories of Advanced Development were created.
The difficulties caused by the harsh climate, significant transportation costs and labor shortages are also typical for the Far Eastern and Arctic territories, the Ministry noted. The intensive economic development of the Far Eastern Federal District leads to an increase in electricity consumption — the rate of its increase is faster than the national average. According to forecasts, the power shortage may reach 3-5 GW by 2030.
The government uses various support tools — priority development territories, the free port of Vladivostok regime, as well as special tax incentives for investors implementing projects on the Kuril Islands. These measures help to ensure the sustainability and balance of investment activities.
At the same time, work is underway to attract qualified specialists to the Far East. A high-income economy is being formed here: the average salary of employees of enterprises opened in the TOP is 50% higher than the national average. The single preferential treatment being developed on behalf of the President should additionally encourage the launch of new projects. In addition, there is a program for the construction of rental housing at a reduced cost — specialists in sought-after professions can rent apartments for a quarter of the market price.
"The development of energy in the Far Eastern Federal District involves the implementation of a set of measures to meet the growing demand for electricity, modernize infrastructure, and improve energy efficiency. The Head of state supported the initiative to extend the Far Eastern surcharge until 2035, which will become an important source of financing for the renewal of energy capacities," the ministry added.
The key problem of the region is the high costs associated with remoteness and difficult climatic conditions, Dmitry Zemlyansky confirmed. These factors significantly limit development. Similar projects in the European part of Russia would be much cheaper. In addition, in recent years, the shortage of personnel for the implementation of large infrastructure projects has been particularly acute in the Far East.
— The scale and consistency of investment development support in the Far East are the most serious in Russia. Many preferential regimes have already been formed: the TOR, the free port of Vladivostok, the SEZ in the Magadan region, residents of the Russian Arctic, the regime for the Kuril Islands, industrial parks and much more," the expert noted. — Such diversity even led to the decision to create a single TOP regime in the Far East starting in 2026 in order to simplify the procedures for changing borders and obtaining resident status.
The main difficulties of investing in the Far East are related to logistical constraints in Yakutia, the Amur Region, the Eastern Administrative District, Chukotka, the Kuril Islands and the Kamchatka Territory, which makes it difficult to transport employees and products even with old factories and personnel, a senior researcher at the Institute of Regional Economics and Inter-Budgetary Relations of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation told Izvestia. Andrey Zhukovsky of the Russian Federation.
— The low population in the north-east of the region makes local production and catering often unprofitable. In addition, due to high logistical costs, prices for goods and services significantly exceed the national average, reducing the effectiveness of federal and regional support for businesses and the public," he said.
In order to overcome the restrictions in the Far East, he said, it is important to develop small-scale civil aviation and road networks, taking into account regional specifics, supporting these projects with long-term subsidies to create jobs and increase budget revenues. Government support measures for businesses and benefits for entrepreneurs in certain territories should be improved.
Investments in transport infrastructure, energy projects, mining and processing of minerals, as well as the agro-industrial complex are actively attracted in the Russian Far East due to free ports, priority development territories and support from the federal government, Olga Pozdnyakova, head of the People's Front, told Izvestia. Analytics". These measures are aimed at integrating the region with the Asia-Pacific region and improving the quality of life.
According to her, the region is becoming more attractive to investors due to its geographical location, natural resources and government support. However, poor logistics, difficult climatic conditions and a shortage of qualified personnel increase the time required for project implementation and the cost of construction and operation.
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