Aviation cluster planned to be built at Alabuga SEZ in Tatarstan

An aviation cluster might appear at Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan. President of the republic Rustam Minnikhanov said this at a meeting with Russia’s Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov.

“A machine centre project United Aircraft Engineering Corporation with a capacity of a million products a year can become the anchor resident,” said Minnikhanov.

According to him, the project will help substitute imports for the aviation sector. The head of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, in turn, claimed he was ready to support the project, says the press service of the Tatarstan president.

Manturov reminded the audience that according to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s instructions, Rostec corporation was preparing a complex of investment projects aimed to provide aircraft production within the cooperation. The aviation cluster project in Tatarstan can be implemented as part of this complex.

It should be reminded that Russian Vice Premier Yury Borisov said in March that the authorities of the country were discussing the possibility of manufacturing as few as 10 Tu-214 planes a year at the Kazan Gorbunov Aviation Plant. According to him, Aeroflot, Red Wings and other airlines could use these planes.

It became known in early April that the United Aircraft Engineering Corporation launched the production of 20 Tu-214 planes. Director General of the corporation Yury Slyusar explained these planes were to replace foreign Boeing and Airbus planes. A few days later, on 8 April, it became known the United Aircraft Engineering Corporation intended to make 70 Tu-214 planes until 2030.

Two weeks ago, Tatarstan Prime Minister Alexey Pesoshin said Kazan Aviation Plant (part of Tupolev PJSC) was preparing to make three Tu-214 planes in 2023. “Then seven and 10 in 2025-2026 with further production of 20 planes at the same time,” he specified.

The Kazan Gorbunov Aviation Plant (a branch of Tupolev) has been making a limited amount of Tu-214, 2-3 planes a year at best.

Tatiana Dyomina
Tatarstan