First international priority development territory in Far East could be built in 2026 - Russian Deputy Prime Minister
KHABAROVSK. Nov 6 (Interfax) - The Russian government have seen foreign companies indicate interest in international priority development territories (PDT), which could be established in the Far East as early as 2026, Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Presidential Ambassador in the Far East Federal District Yury Trutnev said.
"In terms of providing a figure, around half a dozen companies are already showing an established interest in the creation of an international priority development territory. This is not a momentary event. When it comes to international agreements, even an agreements protocol is quite a slow process [...] But this work is being done. And the fact that the number of companies who have expressed interest is more than just one, two or three shows that we will definitely win and the international PDT will be built," Trutnev told journalists on Thursday in Khabarovsk, where he held a meeting on the region's technological and industrial development.
On the benefits which the adopted law would offer future residents of the PDT, Trutnev said that "this includes the whole system of benefits which have already been established in priority development territories, but there are also special ones - for example, that same closed register".
He said that one of the future international PDTs could be built on Bolshoi Ussuriysky Island, located on the border between Russia and China.
"I see the Bolshoi Ussuriysky Island as a very natural location for an international priority development territory," the deputy prime minister said.
As reported, the State Duma has approved a law on the establishment of an international PDT in the Far East which stipulates that participants can be compensated up to 100% of the Central Bank of Russia's interest rate on loans to build infrastructure, receive income tax benefits and other benefits on property, transport and land, and work under a supervisory regime with limited inspections.
International PDTs in the Far East Federal District are to be built either by decision of the Russian government or on the basis of international agreements. The overall area of each zone should not exceed 20 square meters, and projects should involve producing items with high added value, with investments above 500 million rubles. The law will come into effect on January 1, 2026.
Bolshoi Ussuriysky Island is 254 square meters in area and is located on the Amur River in the western part of the Khabarovsk suburbs. The area of the Russian territory is 174 square meters, while the western section of the island and Tarabarov Island have been in Chinese jurisdiction since 2008.
