MURMANSK, March 31. /TASS/. The Arctic's balanced development will make it possible to profit from mining, Russia's Minister for Development of the Far East and Arctic Alexey Chekunkov said at the International Arctic Forum in Murmansk.
"Living in the Arctic for many years is not easy. It's a choice, that may be enjoyable, not for everyone though, and thus our task, the task for the nation, is to ensure balanced and harmonious development to have investment projects implemented and for us to have additional added value, to make the Northern Sea Route a truly international global transport corridor. A foundation for this is living conditions for people," he said, adding master plans for development of Arctic backbone settlements would be presented to the president.
Currently, implemented projects in the Arctic are invested by Russia's leading businesses, he continued. The total amount is 35 trillion rubles ($418 billion). "These investments are working. They are used for bank loans, for equity capital. <...> We are trying to ensure that parallel to this economic development, there is a corresponding improvement in the life quality, so that life is as comfortable and interesting for residents as it may be in other territories of the Russian Federation," he said.
The situation in the Arctic regions
During the forum discussion, the Murmansk Region's Deputy Governor and Minister of Arctic Development and Economy Svetlana Panfilova highlighted the social impact from big investment projects. "The work of industrial giants in the Murmansk Region is, first of all, part of logistics chains with our port, therefore, they keep busy our port and NSR (the Northern Sea Route) in terms of both development and export. An additional social effect is that the mineral resource centers of these industrial companies are our partners that participate in the region's socio-economic development, in social projects - another foundation of the master plans. Practically with all partners we have agreements - Norilsk Nickel, Phosagro, Rosatom, Kovdorsky GOK. Every enterprise in the city of its presence implements a number of very important social programs that improve the quality of life," she said.
The Murmansk region has 100 educational institutions - from schools to universities, and they are assigned to industrial partners, she added. In 2023-2024, businesses invested 500 million rubles ($6 million) in training of students. "We have organized about seven clusters of the kind, and we plan another two for this year, as well as to develop our university," she said in conclusion.
Ruslan Kukharuk, Governor of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region, where two mineral-rich districts recently have become part of the Russian Federation's Arctic Zone, told the forum about how the region had been working on transport accessibility to those areas for residents and subsoil users. "As for cooperation chains, they are an area that we simply need today to create a support mechanism by both the region and the federal government for those subsoil users who both create an industrial base and continue to implement social programs to improve people's lives," he said.
About the forum
The sixth International Arctic Forum was held in the Murmansk Region for the first time. The Forum serves as a platform for discussing the socio-economic development of the Arctic territories, including multilateral strategies for how to harness the region’s vast resources.
A key focus was the Northern Sea Route’s expansion, coinciding with the 500th anniversary of its exploration.
TASS was the information partner of the forum.