News

24.03.2023

Nikolai Rogozhnik presented plans to develop EAEU import substitution before Federation Council

Nikolai Rogozhnik, Deputy Director of the Eurasian Economic Commission's Industrial Policy Department, attended a meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Commission of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation and the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, where the key topic of discussion was import substitution in the manufacturing industry.

Nikolai Rogozhnik reported on developing mechanisms and tools to support cooperation and import substitution in the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as assistance in building cooperative import-substituting production chains as part of the activities conducted by the Commission on cooperation and import substitution in priority and high-tech industries operating at the EEC's venue.

As part of the activities of the interdepartmental working body, some work continues to fill in and update the EAEU industrialization map. This information resource encompasses 158 projects in 25 industries totaling more than 270 bln US dollars. The EAEU industrialization map includes, inter alia, the aviation, motor vehicle, light, metal, machine-tool, pharmaceutical, medical, chemical, and radio-electronic industries.

"The Eurasian Economic Commission works on import substitution in the manufacturing industry in the sectoral context as well", the EEC representative informed. "For this purpose, specialized expert groups have been created, sector-specific lists of the EAEU countries' enterprises ready for integration cooperation have been formed and posted on the Union’s website, and the EEC Board's recommendations on industrial cooperation in railway engineering, shipbuilding, civil aircraft engineering, microelectronics, metal industry and a number of others have been adopted”. 

Besides, the Commission develops supranational financing mechanisms to support cooperative projects of the Eurasian manufacturers.

The new mechanism supported by the Heads of the Union States is a subsidizing part of the interest rates on credits and loans granted to enterprises by financial organizations for cooperative projects in the manufacturing industry. The financing is expected to begin in 2024. According to preliminary calculations, the subsidies will enable to annually promote the development of cooperative projects in the amount of about 20-26 mln dollars.

“Within the EAEU, it is important to create cooperative projects using the competencies of all the Union countries", Nikolai Rogozhnik noted. "Developing the industrial project "Eurasian Electric Bus" proposed by Belarus with an eye to joint implementation by all the Eurasian five countries is one of the positive examples". 


For reference

The Commission on cooperation and import substitution in priority and high-tech industries within the EAEU is an interdepartmental working body established at the level of Deputy Ministers of the Union countries and chaired by Artak Kamalyan, EEC Minister in charge of Industry and Agriculture.