Russia’s Arctic zone is not only the largest resource base in the country, but also spreads out over nine regions and is the largest special economic zone in the world. Today, both the already proven and popular Far Eastern preferential regimes (advanced special economic zones and the Free Port of Vladivostok) and the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation (AZRF), which were purposely developed to access the remote, lightly populated, and harsh territory of the Far North, are successfully operating in the Russian Arctic. Despite the turbulence of the global economy and the heightened sanctions pressure this year, several major and strategically important investment projects that aim to extract and process various natural resources (mineral, energy, water, biological, etc.) continue to be implemented today in Russia’s Arctic zone. What do the prospects look like for cooperation between Russia and Asian countries in the Arctic? What opportunities does the development of the Northern Sea Route create as new logistics chains are built? What projects in the Russian Arctic might be the most interesting for long-term investment?

Moderator:
Elena Lazko — Partner, Head of Strategy and Operations, Kept

Panellists:
Roman Berdnikov — First Deputy General Director, Member of the Management Board, RusHydro
Andrey Grachev — Vice President for Federal and Regional Programs, Norilsk Nickel
Ekaterina Lyakhova — Director for Business Development, The State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM
Oleg Melnikov — Executive Vice President – Head of the Department of Banking Support for Contracts, Gazprombank
Igor Semenov — Executive Director, First Ore Mining Company
Georgy Smirnov — General Director, Nordgold Management

Front row participants:
Mikhail Denisov — Advisor to the Director General on Interaction with Public Authorities, Stenmix Holding Limited
Nikita Dobroslavskiy — Head of the Laboratory for Low Carbon and Circular Economy, Center for Sustainable Development, Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO
Ildar Neverov — Acting General Director, State Trust Arktikugol
Aleksey Struchkov — General Director, Yakutskenergo