NEWS

Working visit to the Mogilev oblast

Enterprises of Belarus’ processing industry will be fully refitted within the next 2-3 years, Prime Minister of Belarus Sergei Sidorsky told media on April 23. The head of Government was on a working visit to the Mogilev oblast. He was familiarised with the progress in implementing three major investment projects: construction of a plant for processing potatoes into starch in OAO Novaya Drut (Belynichi region), reconstruction and modernisation of OAO Bykhov Tinned and Dried Vegetables Factory, and Slavgorodsky Pishchevik.

According to Sergei Sidorsky, there are plans to rebuild 24 production facilities similar to Bykhov’s as part of a relevant presidential decree. Funding has been allocated for this. “They will be modern closed-cycle plants: field – processing – packing,” remarked the Prime Minister.

He stressed, for the tinned food industry it is now important “to link up raw stock producers and processing companies and set up agricultural holding companies, which should be interested in supplying quality raw stock to tinned food producers, while in turn after selling their make processing companies should be interested in sharing profits with the raw stock producers”.

Sergei Sidorsky believes, selling merchandise is the second major task, as refitted processing companies will double the output up to 400 million standard cans. “Our trade system should work with future companies in mind while managers in charge of selling tinned products should reach for distribution networks abroad,” said the Premier.

Russia is Belarus’ key trade partner

Russia remains the key partner for Belarus in trade and economic cooperation, First Vice Premier of Belarus Vladimir Semashko said at a Belarusian-Russian business forum in Minsk on April 23.

He remarked, in 2008 the trade turnover between the two countries may reach $34-35 billion. In Q1 2008 the growth rate of the trade between Belarus and Russia totalled 170% as against the same period of last year. In 2007 the trade between Belarus and Russia amounted to $26 billion.

According to Vladimir Semashko, there is a certain algorithm in economic relations between the two countries. The implementation of Union programmes has allowed preserving entire industries in the economies of the two countries. While for Belarus Russia is the main market for exports and buying raw materials, for Russia Belarus is a major transport and transit corridor.

The official also mentioned the importance of strategic integration development of the two countries. Belarus is working hard upgrading the existing manufacturing facilities, implementing innovation projects. Around 60% of the gross domestic product is exported, including exports to Russia (49.7% of the GDP in Q1 2008).

Vladimir Semashko stressed the importance of attracting investments into the Belarusian economy. At present the country’s need for investments is estimated at $37 billion. In view of this interest in Russian partners is on the rise in Belarus. “We, the government, contact Russian partners practically every day,” said the First Vice Premier.

Vladimir Semashko highly estimated the importance of the Belarusian-Russian economic forum (the first one in the history of the Union State), which was organised by chambers of commerce and industry of Belarus and Russia. “We cannot but rejoice at successes of Russia, our ally and partner,” said the First Vice Premier. “It is no secret that the business of Belarusian industrialists depends on how well things in Russia are”. Vladimir Semashko is convinced, the Minsk business forum will establish new contacts between the countries and reinforce the existing ones, will allow improving the competitive ability of the economies, actively promoting investment cooperation.

There are more than a thousand joint companies with Russian capital in Belarus or 25% of the total number of the joint ventures with foreign capital in this country, First Vice Premier Vladimir Semashko noted during the Belarusian-Russian business forum in Minsk on April 23.

According to Vladimir Semashko, there are 4 thousand joint ventures with 90 countries worldwide in Belarus including 500 joint ventures with investments from the USA, 360 – from Germany, 330 – from Poland. On the whole, Belarus’ demands for investments are estimated at the amount of $37 billion.

Belarusian companies pay around $150 per 1,000 cubic meters of Russian gas, First Vice-Premier of Belarus Vladimir Semashko stated at the Belarusian-Russian business-forum in Minsk.

1kWh of electricity costs 10.54 cents, 1 Gigacalorie $27-28. Thus, energy is two times more expensive for Belarusian economic entities than for consumers in the Smolensk oblast.

Belarus imports 85% of energy carriers. “Therefore energy efficiency is extremely important for us and we welcome investments in the energy industry,” Vladimir Semashko stressed.

He also informed that Belarus has reached positive results in this area. In 2007, the growth of GDP made up 223% over 1995 while the growth of energy consumption 105.6%. In fact we have doubled GDP and managed to restrain the growth of energy consumption, Vladimir Semashko said.

Some time in the future Belarus will attract private investment in the electricity industry, First Vice-Premier of Belarus Vladimir Semashko stated at the Belarusian-Russian business-forum in Minsk.

According to him, Belarus is currently drafting several laws in this field. These laws deal with the electricity industry, nuclear power, renewable and local fuels. “By the end of the year-early next year these bills will turn laws,” Vladimir Semashko said.

The electricity industry in Belarus is 100% state-owned today. With the laws on the electricity industry in force, the electricity generating facilities will be able to use private investments. New prospects will open up for Russian capital, Vladimir Semashko added.

A priority is also given to the construction of the facilities running on renewable local fuels. The preferences will be introduced to make these projects effective. The preferences, for example, include a special tariff on electricity which will be valid for seven years and some others.

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