Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev gave the green light to extention of the State Program “Social and Economic Development of the Arctic Area 2020” time frame until 2025, the government press office said.
The government plans to allocate about RUB 150 billion for the program, including funds from the Russian Ministry of Defense of Russia and 58 billion rubles from different civilian agencies. The program includes the 2018-2020 initial stage period which will require RUB 12 billion rubles in the federal budget.
The first direction of the state program is the preparation of eight territories, the major development zones. In particular, the regions will require regulatory and legal framework and necessary research and development be carried out. The subprogram key project is the launch of a floating observatory "North Pole". It will provide research and monitoring of the natural environment in the latitudes of the Arctic Ocean. The observatory will be commissioned as part of Phase1.
The next direction covers activities for the development of Arctic shipping. This includes creation of a unified information and telecommunications system of the transport complex, as well as overhaul of the Zhataisk Ship Repair and Shipbuilding Yard. The task is to increase utilization of the Northern Sea Route and the adjacent river Arctic shipping lanes for domestic and international trade flows.
The last subprogram is devoted to the development of mineral resources, including that of the continental shelf. This stage is to scheduled to be launched in 2021.