Innokam gives Tatarstan new toll bridge across Kama river and intercity trams
Authorities of the Republic recognize that the future of Tatarstan megaprojects more and more dependent on Federal money.
Only the first stage of the project Innokam will need 100 billion of investment on infrastructure. Apart from its own funds, the roads to Kama cluster will be built on Federal funds, as well as investors' funds. So, in Tatarstan there will be a new toll bridge across the Kama river, high-speed trams between the cities of Zakamye and restored the Kuibyshev railway and the M7 highway. The authorities of the Republic recognize that Federal funding plays bigger role in implementation of the project: the entire project would cost 700 billion rubles. The success in promoting Innokam guarantees Tatarstan an easy access to the budget funds.
Innokam as an easy access to the Federal budget
The authorities of the Republic hope for the earliest adoption of the concept of development of Innokam that will make easier Tatarstan access to Federal funding. It was told by the Ministry of Economy of RT Artem Zdunov at briefing, who was summing up the Gaidar Forum, where the project was presented. Innokam implies a prerogative right to introduce those projects to the state programme of RF, that are located on the territory of Kama agglomeration,' – explained the Minister. It means that Kama cluster won't need to 'fight' for the financing for each project every year.
Innokam is the project of development of Kama agglomeration of Tatarstan, where all major enterprises of The Republic are concentrated: Tatneft, Taneko, TAIF-NK, Nizhnekamskneftechim, Kamaz, Ford-Sollers, SEZ Alabuga, Ammonia and others. Together they give a quarter of the Republic's GRP (410 billion rubles), 26% of the population live here, and these projects are considered as the points of growth in the strategy of development 2030. The agglomeration is divided into 6 clusters. In automotive industry the main enterprises are KAMAZ and Ford Sollers, and the largest projects are the reengineering of production and the production of prospective KAMAZ vehicles, the development of national transport systems with high environmental parameters. Besides, they believe in the project 'Electrobus' – a passenger bus in the electric power. According to the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of JSC Tatneftechiminvest-Holding Leisan Abzalilova, today some pilot samples are produced and they are very popular, there are almost 200 orders from all over Russia. Another project – the development of innovative system of relay intercity shipping with the use of swap bodies on the basis of KAMAZ chassis. In the field of chemistry and petrochemistry the priority projects are the oil-refining complex TANEKO, the establishment of the ethylene complex of new generation Nizhnekamskneftekhim, further development of gas-chemical complex on the basis of the Ammonia project, that has already reached its planned capacity, and the processing of plastics at Nizhnekamskneftekhim. In the field of food, Chelny-broiler, Chelny-bread, Agrosila-group, Kama bacon companies also presented the development projects at 10 billion rubles.
'Traffic collapse' on the roads, on water and on rail routes
'But we are faced with major infrastructure constraints that are connected not only with the export of products from these industries, but also with the delivery of raw materials. And the further, the worse. And if we will realize that projects, we face with a traffic collapse, that has place almost today. Therefore, together with the Ministry of economic development, relevant ministries and departments of the Russian Federation, we developed a new document,' – said Zdunov. According to his words, the basis for the strategy became a document, developed by Tomsk Oblast, but it was adapted for Tatarstan production needs. By the end of the week, it will be submitted to the Russia's government for interagency coordination. However, the Minister hopes that the process after the Gaidar Forum will go faster, as the Deputy Chairman of the government Arkady Dvorkovichheaded the working group on it and it includes representatives of all relevant agencies. In general, now the projects of such scale Tatarstan implements with support from the Federal center. 'We are going to solvemany projects of the Republic on the level of the Russian government. Because it is impossible to implement on their own: when you hear the projects and their costs, you will understand that without the involvement of Federal funding, third-party private financing these projects would be difficult to implement. And transport constraints should be removed today,' – he admitted.
Artem Zdunov: 'There are all Ministry representatives in the working group, and they agreed with Innokam. So it won't take long to coordinate it.' Photo: Roman Khasaev
As the Minister of Transport and Roads of RT Lenar Safin added, in order to develop Kama cluster it is needed to reconstruct the infrastructure. First of all, the reconstruction of the Federal Highway M7 from Kazan to Naberezhnye Chelny (73 km). It needs to be brought up to the first category. 'We organised this work together with Rosavtodor, but now we are in the situation of limitation of financing. According to the contract, it must be completed by 2019. But we will try to reconstruct it by 2018,' – said the Minister.
They are waiting for 50% of Federal funds on the bridge across Kama, but it will be toll anyway
The weak place is still Nizhnekamsk hydroelectric power station and its capacity. 'A major reconstruction and repair are needed, and in this regard we think that the construction of the new bridge across Kama in Sokolki area, near Mamadysh, with bypass of our large industrial cities of Nizhnekamsk and Naberezhnye Chelny, with access to new roads and the Federal Highway M7 is a serious and essential project. We have already started the development, technical-financial justification of the project is done,' – he said. The new bridge, according to Safin, will be built with public-private partnership, and, therefore, will be paid. 'I think that by the end of the year the project will have passed the appropriate examination, and we will be developing the implementation, announcing a competition for the concession contract and search for investors. There are potential investors, and we are working with them and there is a chance that by 2017-2018 we will launch the project,' – he supposes. How much the pass will cost, the Minister didn't say. 'A payment will be calculated from the financial model of the project participants. Now Platon system has worked, and we can get to 50% subsidy of the Federal budget on these projects,' – he said.
Outdated and overcrowded Kuibyshev railway also slows down the cargo transportation. 'The construction of the second ways is needed on Argyz field, a new line of the railway line to the station Traktornaya, it is our special economic zone,' – told the Minister. He accounted the total amountfor 15 billion rubles. Due to investment projects of JSC Russian Railways and with the involvement in some cases of private investors we are planning to remove these transport limitations at the site of the Kuibyshev railway,' – concluded Safin. It will require investments in the dredging of Volga, which in some places cannot accept some vessels.
The total calculation of expenditures on infrastructure, by Safin's rough estimate, can be about 100 billion rubles: 50 billion — on a bridge across Kama and the road bypass of two cities (at a cost of 400 million rubles per km). Besides, the issue of construction of a speed tram line between the cities of Zakamye is working out. 'In Chelny the old bridge connected with the new one, that is project we have now in Nizhnekask. Now we are considering that project,' – he said, by he couldn't answer the question about the calculations of that project.
Will Innokam rejuvenate the population and 'landscape' Tatarstan?
In general, the authorities consider Innokam project as the removal of limitations of development of the Kama agglomeration. Accordind to them, it will reduce the average age of the population from 37 to 36 years, increase life expectancy to 74 years, improve the position of Tatarstan in the ecological rating of regions from 53 to 43, and will help to climb up from fourth to the third place in the rating of the quality of life. It was said by Abzalilova. Also, according to her point of view, industrial output in 2020 will grow by 76% on 2015. Investments in fixed capital during the same period will increase by 57%, the emissions will decrease by 18%.
As Zdunov noted, estimated lead time of the cluster – from 4 to 10 years. According to him, one of the most expensive and long-term projects is the construction of NGL Yamal-the Volga region – a pipeline to transport broad fractions of light hydrocarbons as an alternative to road and rail transportation of raw materials, which has been discussed for many years, but is still far from realization. There is Federal support, says the Minister, however, he don't want to predict in such difficult economic situation.