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08.12.2014

Business Breakfast of Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation at the Transport of Russia Forum

The first day of the VIII International Forum and Transport Russia Exhibition began with the Business Breakfast of the Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation.

The meeting was held with representatives from investment, financial institutions, construction, and transport companies. Presentations were given by Herman Gref, President and Chairman of Sberbank’s Board of Directors; Kirill Dmitriev, HAGB CEO; Albert Eganyan, Chairman of the Board’s partners VEGAS LEX; Victor Basargin, the governor of the Perm region; Nikolay Podguzov, the Russian Deputy Minister for Economic Development; Alexander Misharin, first Vice-President of the Russian Railways, and Sergey Khramagin, General Director of the Russian Transport Licensing Company,.

In his welcome address to the guests at the forum, the Minister noted that the Business Breakfast had become a traditional event, held during the International Transport Forum, which is known as “Transport of Russia”. “Today we will be discussing the prospects of developing the transport industry, the ability to attract extra-budgetary sources and the structuring of public-private partnerships,” said Maxim Sokolov. “We have the right to look towards the future with optimism, since the regulatory structures have already been created, and we have accumulated a great deal of experience in successfully implementing public-private partnership projects (PPP). According to the minister, there is currently an urgent bundle of projects, which could be presented to the investment and backing community. Over the past six years, a number of interesting projects have been structured, started and, most importantly, successfully implemented. One of these – a project to build an airport terminal at Pulkovo airport – has been recognized as one of the best and most successful PPP projects in Europe. Moreover, construction has been recently completed on the last line of the Western High-Speed ​​Diameter in St Petersburg. The first section of the new M11 road from Moscow to St. Petersburg has been opened with the help of PPP, said Sokolov. There are a number of other projects and most importantly, there are sources through which these kinds of projects can be implemented. This, the National Welfare Fund, and the decisions that were subsequently taken after a meeting of the State Council Presidium... are all associated with directing additional funds towards developing the road sector,” underlined the Minister.

Victor Basargin, the governor of the Perm region, shared his experience of launching projects at a regional level, and noted the need to invest in developing the railways and Russia’s air transport.

The guests at the Business Breakfast also discussed the global financial markets. In particular, the Minister of Transport said that, in the current economic climate, Russia must enter new financial markets.

Kirill Dmitriev, Deputy Chairman of the Investment Council under the Chairman of the State Duma discussed what it was like working with Asian investors, saying that “investment in infrastructure is particularly relevant now to maintain and strengthen economic growth”.

Herman Gref, President and Chairman of the Board of Sberbank, raised an important issue about establishing an overall strategy for developing transport in Russia. “A coherent strategy for the development of transport is our key task today. We must start openly to talk about our setbacks.” Gref also drew the attention of the audience to the problem of traffic jams in central cities in Russia, calling for it to be resolved as soon as possible.

Continuing with the theme of private investment, Nikolay Podguzov, Deputy Minister for Economic Development of the Russian Federation, noted the need for proper structuring projects, saying that “we must learn to package projects so that they are attractive to private investors.”

As part of the Breakfast, Alexander Misharin, First Vice-president of the Russian Railways, discussed projects that are currently being developed by his company. Particular attention was placed on a main line called the “Northern Latitudinal Passageway”, which is currently being built within the framework of the Russian Transport Strategy 2030. “Today, we have a strong focus on the development of the Northern Sea Route and the passage to the Arctic”, explained Misharin.

A video from the Business Breakfast of Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation can be found on the event’s website: transweek.ru/2014/ru/forum/translation/

The VIII International Forum and Transport of Russia Exhibition will be held from December 4-6th in Moscow, at the Gostiny Dvor exhibition hall. The 2014 business program will focus on ensuring the advanced development of transport infrastructure and the congruence between the Russian Transport Strategy, 2030 and the regional programs.

Over 15 discussions will be held at the Forum, as well as other events involving more than 100 speakers and 2,000 delegates, including: transport ministers from the CIS countries and Europe, the heads of Russian regions, specialist international organisations, and Russian and foreign companies, which operate in the field of transport and other related industries.

You can find out more about the VIII International Forum and Transport of Russia Exhibition on the official event’s website: transweek.ru/2014/ru/forum/

Co-organiser: Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation
Organiser: Business Dialogue LLC