Investments
Vitebsk region is the northern gate of Belarus, situated in the center of Belarus Lakeland, located on main trade crossroads of the republic.
Advantages of a geographical position result in basic transport highways connecting such large megacities as Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Riga, Vilnius, Warsaw and Kiev, located within 400-600 kms from Vitebsk.
The territory is included in structure of two transport European corridors: Berlin — Warsaw-Minsk-Moscow through Orsha and Helsinki — Vitebsk-Gomel-Kiev-Plovdiv.
The investment potential of Vitebsk region is developed through its natural resources
Natural resources allow to develop construction, wood processing, agriculture. The region is reach with the largest deposits of dolomite, peat, sapropel. There is also the greatest in republic wood processing fund.
Woods occupy 1314,5 thousand ha, or 25 % of land, stocks of wood are estimated 185 million m3, among them young — 17,5 %, medium — 55,5, near ripe — 20, ripe — 7 %. The thoroughbred structure of woods is diverse, coniferous is prevailing — 59,6 % . Annually is prepared up to 1,8 million m3 of wood.
Projects on manufacture of laminated plates including coloured, plywood,chip boards, MDF plates, furniture boards and glued bars, postforming, floor boards and also technology on recycling of waste products, release of wood fuel briquettes and pellets are priority.
The fund of natural reservoirs consists of 1853 lakes and water basins of a different class with general area of 97 thousand hectares and 1420 kilometers of rivers of supreme and first category.
By expert estimations natural reservoirs without damage to fish stocks can annually withdraw about 800 tons of fish. The area is mostly full of peat where there are 3400 peat deposits which make 29 % of common stocks of peat of Byelorussia. Geological stocks of peat are estimated 1,25 billion tons.
In national economy peat is used as fuel, fertilizer, in manufacture of biostimulators, fodder yeast, sorbents and dyes of wood, wax, medical products, products for household chemical goods, in polygraphic industry.
Vitebsk area poses resources of mineral water with high medical and preventive qualities.
Chloride waters are found in Lepel and Ushachy areas, sulphatic — in Gorodok, Postavy, Ushachy , chloride-sulphatic- in Lepel and Braslav, sulphate-chloride in Polotsk area.
There are 1430 sapropel productive lakes that makes 75 % of lake fund of Byelorussia. Sapropel is applied for preparation of fertilizer, limy materials, impurity in forage. It can be used for manufacture of building materials, as a chisel solution in prospecting practice and in medical purposes. Medical sapropel has the best parameters than many other medical dirties.
There are about 30 deposits of sapropel which can be recommended in balneology.
Projects on release of peat briquettes, peat pellets, lumpy peat, manufacture of peat soils and peat mixes with various mineral additives are priority.
Industrial enterprises of Vitebsk region can attract investors to produce various products from dolomite — face-wall materials, bricks, plates, faience.
Deposits of dolomite suitable for manufacture of mineral fertilizers, make 766,3 million tons. Joint Stock Company «Dolomite», release dolomite flour, it is provided with the reconnoitered stocks for 80 years. Dolomite is used in construction, metallurgical, chemical and other industries and also in an agriculture for liming sour soils. At present new technologies on production of fire protective materials, potash and cement from dolomite are discussed with investors.
In total 200 deposits of clay are developed suitable for ceramic manufacture and easy fillers (grains). The general industrial stocks are estimated 70 million m3, annual extraction up to 1 million m3.
It allows to develop projects on production of building blocks from foam clay, to master clay drainage.
Scientific and technical potential is focused on applied researches in manufacture of new kinds of building materials, energy and resources saving, ecological safety, development of textile, shoe industry, perfection of processing of agricultural products, modernization of the largest petrochemical complex of republic.
On average per year the volume of manufacture of industrial output makes about 7 bln.USD., increasing annually 8-9 percent. The annual output of fuel industry enterprises is about 3 bln.USD, chemical and petrochemical branch -680 million, mechanical engineering -200 million, wood and wood processing — 90 million, building materials- 97 million, textile industry — 420 million, food-processing industry-340 million dollars.
The area makes about 13 percent of industrial output of Byelorussia.
In area 44 percent of electric power of republic is developed, 52 percent of oil is primarily processed, half of republican release of automobile gasoline and almost 60 percent of diesel fuel is made, 36 % of machine tools and tools are let out, 30 % of ceramic brick, 100 % of linen fabrics, 70 % of carpets, 18 % of hosieries, 46 % of footwear, 11 % of knitted products, 48 % of TVs, 12 % of meat and eggs, 17 % of milk, 11 % of sausage products, oils, vegetables, 9 % of potato and 15 % of grain.
The enterprises process annually 316 thousand tons of peat, 2 mln. tons of dolomite, produce more than 9 million tons of oil, 1.5 million tons of gasoline, 4.0 -diesel fuel, 316 thousand tons of bitumen, produce above 400 thousand TVs, 137 thousand tons of polythene, 39 thousand tons of fiber glass, 63 thousand tons of chemical fibres, about 12 million sq.m of hard board plates, 44 thousand cubic meters of chip boards, 250 mln. of bricks, 10 thousand tons of flax fibers, 30 million metres of flax garments, above 6 million sq.metres of carpets, about 4 million pairs footwear, almost 20 mln.pairs of hosieries.
In order to increase investment attraction of Vitebsk Free Economic Zone with special customs and foreign trade advantages was established in 1999, allowing to develop new technologies and introduce import replacing and export projects. There were registered enterprises producing monitors of a various class, optic-fiber cable, container stations for clearing and iron protection of natural waters, production of gasolines, vet pharmaceutical, anorexiants on protection of plants and animals. Projects on manufacture of liquefied gas, pectins, face side brick from dolomite, wooden frame houses, gas meters are prepared, as well as construction of modern enterprise on processing of dolomite into cement and potash are discussed.
For it manufacture foreign trade contacts are supported with more than 100 countries of the world, among of them Great Britain, Netherlands, Latvia, Poland, the USA, Germany, Italy. About half of production produced by the enterprises is exported.
For last five years the foreign trade turnover of the area doubled and exceeded 43 billion USD.
Fiber glass, flax fabrics, footwear, sewing, knitted and hosieries, various kinds of mineral oil, bricks and stone ceramic, hard boards, processed wood, colza oil, high-quality meat and milk products, acrylic fibre and polythene are in great demand on foreign markets.
Certification of systems of quality within requirements of international standards ISO 9000 is introduced on 160 enterprises, principles of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point were adopted by 14 enterprises, systems of ecological management on standards ISO 14000 are introduced at 9 enterprises.
For successful activity of foreign enterprises trading credits and loans from foreign suppliers are widely used. There are distribution network in the regions of the Russian Federation, first of all in Moscow, Saint Petersburg and boarder regions .
On territory of Moscow which take about 30 percent of all deliveries to the Russian Federation, representations of JSS «Vitebskmiasomolprom», «Marko», «Belwest», meat processing factory, «Aljansplast», «Bel-Bimbo», «Fortex» are registered.
Besides Moscow an inter-regional level is established and communications with 50 regions and cities of Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Germany, Sweden, Chinese People’s Republic are supported.
Since May, 1998 the Vitebsk region is a member of cross boarder association «Lake District», uniting 20 frontier areas of Vitebsk area, Lithuania and Latvia. Joint projects are realized within the framework of international programs TACIS and INTERREG on good neighbourhood «Lithuania — Latvia-Belarus», «Baltic sea regions» directed on development of tourism, rural business, preservation of traditions of workmanship.
The administration of Vitebsk region actively searches ways of attraction of investments, in every possible way promotes mutually advantageous contacts, aspires to create favorable preconditions for economic and social partnership.