14 Feb 2019 11:09

Russian ministry gets over 500 investment projects to boost agribusiness exports

SOCHI. Feb 14 (Interfax) - Russia's Agriculture Ministry has received more than 500 applications describing investment projects that would make it possible to generate about $18 billion in exports in the period to 2024, Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev said on the sidelines of the Sochi Investment Forum.

About 50 of these applications are highly detailed and elaborated. "This shows the high activity and interest of businesses in the federal project," Patrushev told reporters.

Patrushev said his ministry will support production of export-oriented products, primarily through subsidized credit for agribusinesses. Overall funding for this purpose will amount to 280.9 billion rubles to 2024.

There are also other financial instruments of support, such as partial reimbursement for irrigation expenses, for which 2.5 billion rubles has been allocated in 2019 and a total of 36.8 billion rubles in the period to 2024. Funding for transportation of agribusiness products will total 26 billion rubles to 2024, including 1.3 billion rubles in 2019; and funding for promotion on foreign markets will total 2 billion rubles and 300 million rubles, respectively. Product certification will be introduced in 2020, and funding for this purpose will total 2.8 billion rubles to 2024.