The district authorities are establishing plans for working with investors as part of a large project.
The biggest project in Yugra, the Scientific and Technical Center “UNITI Park,” is estimated at 90 billion rubles. Deputy Governor Vladislav Nigmatulin shared this information, stating that the initial 2015 estimate was 52 billion. However, the district authorities do not view these figures as final, and they are not rejecting the large project despite the challenging economic situation. Additionally, preparations are underway to begin constructing one of the STC facilities, the Center for High Biomedical Technologies, in Khanty-Mansiysk, with cooperation from the Shvabe-Moscow company. Investors have already expressed interest in UNITY Park, which will include a university, a technology park, an exhibition center, and other facilities. The authorities are planning to finance the construction site using budgetary funds and partners, and they are currently considering various options.
The government of Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug-Yugra stated that the design of the Center for High Biomedical Technologies will be completed this year, aiming to bring together the scientific and educational community for genetic engineering and research projects. Participants include the NRC “Kurchatov Institute” and the Institute of Molecular Biology named after A.I. V.A. Engelhardt RAS.
Deputy Governor Vladislav Nigmatulin mentioned that expert opinions are being considered in the creation and equipping of the Center, which will include laboratories for molecular genetic research methods, cellular and microfluidic technologies, mass spectrometry, bioinformatics, and a biobank.
In the future, the center will enable the development of systems for diagnosing significant diseases, new medications, and will contribute to the establishment of a national genetic information database.
Deputy Governor of KhMAO Vladislav Nigmatulin
The Shvabe-Moscow company, a part of the Rostec Group of Companies, was the contractor for designing and constructing the facility, with a contract worth over 4.7 billion rubles. The deputy governor mentioned that the cost of the facility remains unchanged, and although sanctions have impacted equipment delivery time, the construction of the center is expected to take around two years. Nevertheless, preparations for its future operation have already commenced.
The regional authorities are setting the task of attracting large investors to the project of the scientific and technological center “UNITI Park”, which has long outgrown the regional level. The project itself received priority status back in 2019, and in 2020 the governor of Yugra, Natalia Komarova, showed the President of Russia the scale of the STC. The head of state supported the idea of building a center in Surgut.
The STC, in addition to the Center for High Biomedical Technologies, includes the creation of a new university, a research center, a technology park, a convention and exhibition center, housing and social infrastructure for workers and students.
The main attention will be focused on the development of scientific and educational activities in the field of oil and gas production, including hard-to-recover reserves. As conceived by the authors of the project, it will attract wide attention of oil and gas industry companies, increase the investment attractiveness of Surgut and put it on the level of federal research centers.
In parallel with the detailed design of the project, work has already been launched to create an engineering infrastructure (main road, water conduits, storm sewers, etc.) at the STC site of 70 hectares, and funding for this activity has been supported at the federal level.
According to a representative of the Ugra government, various schemes for raising funds are being considered, including within the framework of public-private partnerships. Developers are already showing interest in building new housing on the NTC site.
Interest in the implementation of the global project is also expressed by VEB Engineering LLC, VTB Capital JSC, Sberbank PJSC, representatives of small and medium-sized businesses. Work with each of them is carried out on an individual basis, and in the near future the regional authorities are preparing to present schemes for interaction with investors.
