The Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum is one of the key venues for discussing current economic development not only in Siberia but across the Arctic. In this year's 19th Forum, the Arctic agenda has been set aside as a separate block of events, focusing on the most important economic issues in the polar region. The current situation and future prospects for business development beyond the Arctic Circle were discussed at a panel discussion by representatives of the Far East Development Corporation, residents of the AZRF and the leadership of the Arctic regions.

What is the state of business activity in the Arctic today? There are currently 566 companies that are residents of the AZRF, with a total declared investment of almost RUB 801 bn and actual investments exceeding RUB 76.6 bn. The projects will create 38,000 new jobs, of which 11,000 have already been created. The projects range from large-scale mining and infrastructure projects to local businesses in services, tourism, agriculture, development, housing and transport, the latter being the vast majority.

In terms of residents, the proportion of SMEs is as high as 90%. For example, according to Vladimir Gudkov, Deputy Director of the Department for Arctic Zone Investment Projects Support, 142 companies—or virtually every fourth resident—currently operate in the services sector, with investments of RUB 8.4 bn. And when assessing the volume of investment, the leader is undoubtedly commodity projects—only 4.5% of residents have declared investments of RUB 169 bn.

According to Leonid Agafonov, the session's moderator, Managing Director of EastRussia Media Group and member of the Public Council under the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic, potential investors are well aware of the opportunities and preferences offered to AZRF residents. Unique business support tools for AZRF residents have created an ecosystem based on public-private partnerships. Thanks to preferential taxation, subsidies of up to 75% of insurance premiums, zero income tax for 10 years and other support measures, the number of new investors and businesses in the polar region has been growing steadily since 2020.

Like any evolving system, however, the set of measures to support businesses in the AZRF needs fine-tuning to meet current economic and geopolitical realities. 'The legal and regulatory framework for the development of the Arctic zone does not end. We believe, of course, that it already exists to a sufficient extent, but it requires constant modernisation, particularly in the area of preferential regimes,' said Maxim Dankin, Deputy Director for Regional Development, Information and Analytical Centre of the State Commission for Arctic Development.

In the session, business representatives shared their current challenges, largely due to the harsh climate and logistics costs. For example, the harsh climate conditions in the Arctic are still frightening for some investors, but the general trend suggests that existing prejudices are slowly disappearing.

Some companies even prefer to move to the polar region, as a number of companies that produce construction materials for the 'big construction project' in Norilsk are planning to do. Maksim Mironov, Director of the Norilsk Development Agency, said so. According to him, the Norilsk 2035 programme, which envisages a large-scale modernisation of the housing and infrastructure of one of the largest Arctic cities, has created a high demand for products for its implementation. An industrial park with a building materials production cluster is planned to meet the needs of local producers and future residents. It will cover 11,500 hectares, be connected to the urban infrastructure and have all the necessary energy resources. There are currently 20 registered AZRF residents in Norilsk and 60 investment projects are underway.

At the end of the session, Vladimir Gudkov said that feedback from representatives had been recorded and problems had been taken up. He said work was already underway to expand the tools to support AZRF residents and bring back old tools that were in demand.