subscribe to news Experts discussed mechanisms of industrial policy in the chemical industry

The Panel on the Mechanisms for Forming and Implementing Industrial Policy in the Chemical Industry, organised by the Russian Minister of Industry and Trade, the Russian Chemists Union, EXPOCENTRE AO, took place today within the Khimia 2022 conference programme. The event was moderated by the State Duma Member Maria Vasilkova.

According to Mikhail Yurin, Director of the Department of the Chemical and Technological Complex and Bioengineering Technologies of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the chemical industry is growing both in terms of production and consumption. The share of the chemical sector in manufacturing is about 13%. At the same time imports are decreasing. Since 2020, the share of imports has fallen to 35.1%. "The import substitution plan for 2022-2024, which the Ministry of Industry and Trade is preparing, includes not only the projects that companies see for themselves, but also the projects that we see and believe should be done," the speaker added.

Yulia Barinova, Deputy Minister of Investment, Industry and Science of the Moscow Region, spoke about the establishment of a chemical cluster in the Moscow Region. "The Moscow Region Government has decided to create the first industrial chemical cluster in the Moscow Region. There are all the prerequisites for its creation. There are more than 120 chemical companies in the Moscow Region. The creation of an industrial chemical cluster will enable us to bring the industry to an even higher level than it is at present", she said. The task of the cluster, according to Yulia Barinova, should be not only to modernise the existing infrastructure, but also to attract new investors to the territory of the Moscow Region and to increase the production capacity of existing chemical enterprises.

Svetlana Matelo, President of the Board of the Association of Commodity Producers "National Council on Perfumery, Cosmetics, Household Chemistry" spoke about the state of the perfumery and cosmetics market in Russia and the prospects of cooperation with raw material producers and science and technology centres. "Our industry can become a driving force for new developments in related sciences: chemistry, biology, medicine. It is part of fine chemical synthesis and is science-intensive”, the speaker was convinced.

Victor Ivanov, President of the Russian Chemists Union, lamented in his speech that "the issues of our technological backwardness have been of concern recently. In recent years it has been clear that it is possible to buy technology and equipment abroad and build turnkey production. But today our task is to combine business and science, said the head of the Union.

Mikhail Nikulin, General Director of Gazpromneft - Industrial Innovations, joined the discussion. He drew attention to the fact that the industry is in a state of some turbulence: raw material chains have changed, markets are being redistributed, fine chemicals have left, Western licensors and technology suppliers to support production facilities have left. In order to find a way out, technological development is needed. And this topic will be central for years to come, because it will provide a development strategy for companies, businesses and, accordingly, the industry.

Alexander Kupavnykh, Managing Director of Sberbank's Industrial and Agricultural Finance Division, suggested looking at the problems discussed from a financing perspective. He said: "The Russian chemicals and fertilizers industry is in a stable condition. On a number of fronts, higher prices have compensated for lower production and sales. In some areas there has been an increase in production. With the departure of foreign suppliers of raw materials and equipment, the question arises as to how to shape the supply chain". In the speaker's opinion, the first priority should be given to fine chemical projects, development of infrastructure projects and logistics, while maintaining the achieved raw material advantage.

Alexander Shikhanov, General Director of PK Pigment, gave examples of increasing the production volumes of his company and shared his experience of working in the conditions of sanctions. Dmitry Medvedev, General Director of Salavat Catalyst Plant, devoted his speech to import substitution in silicon dioxide chemistry. And Denis Bolushevsky, Managing Director of the Agency for Technological Development, focused his colleagues' attention on the topic: "Ensuring technological sovereignty of the Russian Federation, grants for reengineering".

View a video streaming

Press Service, EXPOCENTRE AO