Press center
05.12.2022
Prospects for cooperation between Indian and Astrakhan economic zones discussed at the TRANSTEC forum
Speaking at the session «North-South ITC: moving forward» of the TRANSTEC forum, Sergey Milushkin noted the importance of developing cooperation between the economic zones located on the North-South International Transport Corridor as the key points of development of logistics and manufacturing projects.
— At the time when the Lotos Industrial SEZ in Astrakhan Oblast was established, not many people talked about the North-South transport corridor, but we understood back then that it was the only route for our products to reach the world market. Today it is strategically important for restoring logistic chains and developing our country’s trade with friendly countries. Therefore, our main task is to prepare the territory of the port SEZ and transfer it to the residents for the construction of modern port infrastructure. Now we are actively equipping the first stage — berths 8 and 9 of the port of Olya. The contractor is completing work on the backfill and leveling 40 hectares of land for the construction of container, grain and oil terminals. The anchor resident is fencing off the area and beginning the construction of the warehouses. We are planning to launch the first phase to full capacity in early 2024. Then we will start the second stage — the preparation of the territory for the construction of a new port near the Zaburunny Ilmen. All this will allow to create in the Astrakhan region of modern transshipment capacity of 20 million tons and come close to the infrastructure, which is created in Iran and India for the processing of goods on the North-South ITC, — said the Director General of SEZ Lotus JSC Sergey Milushkin.
He held a number of meetings and negotiations with the companies interested in implementation of the projects on the territory of the Port Special Economic Zone. During the dialogue with the managing director of the Indian company Siddhartha Logistics they discussed the issue of cooperation between the economic zones of the Republic of India and the Astrakhan region. The company has several enterprises in the economic zones in India and is ready to assist in the development of joint projects. The representative of the Indian party underlined the interest in creating a common logistic route on the North-South international transport corridor through the supporting economic zones. Also such cooperation, in the opinion of both sides, will not only allow to develop logistics but will also create prerequisites for joint production projects in the economic zones.
— It is important for the North-South ITC to work to improve trade between Russia and India. This includes the development of connections to Indian logistics centers and seaports«, — noted the managing director of Siddhartha Logistics Nishchal Padhya.
During his visit to St. Petersburg the Director General of JSC SEZ Lotus also visited the plant of the Russian company «SMM» which is a leader in import substitution of foreign lifting equipment. During the meeting they discussed the prospects of installing the company’s cranes on the territory of the port SEZ and the organization of service for such equipment.
