MOSCOW: The Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade has announced plans to double the country’s technical fibres production by 2020. To implement these plans, Russia will expand the use of its large reserves of oil and other resources, including timber and other raw materials for the production of synthetics.
Currently, the domestic production of technical fibres can meet only 30% of Russia’s annual demand, however, as part of the government plans, this might change.
Prior to 2014, the dependence on imports in Russia varied in the range of 80-90%. However, the beginning of the financial crisis in Russia in 2014, ruble has made further imports of technical textiles unprofitable. As a result, many importers began to consider the prospects of localising the production.
According to the Vice-President of the Russian Union of Chemists Sergei Golubkov, currently, chemical industry accounts for about 1.8% in the Russian GDP, which is significantly lower than the average rate of 10-14% for developed countries. Golubkov also said that reaching the EU levels would contribute to the growth of the Russian technical textiles industry.
Denis Mantrov, the spokesman of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, also noted that low taxes and customs duties, as well as the proximity of Russia to both European and Asian markets, provides additional advantages to the domestic industry.
