Before the meeting, the Prime Minister reviewed an interchange that is currently under construction on the M-7 Volga federal motorway, from a helicopter.
Mikhail Mishustin’s opening remarks
Excerpts from the meeting:
Good afternoon, colleagues.
Meeting on the Europe – Western China Expressway project
Meeting on the Europe – Western China Expressway project
Meeting on the Europe – Western China Expressway project
Meeting on the Europe – Western China Expressway project
Today we are discussing the international Europe – Western China transport corridor project. Several express roads that are part of this corridor are already in operation. The Neva motorway, a section of this route connecting St Petersburg and Moscow, was put into operation last year. The work on the Central Circle Road in the Moscow Region is in its final stage.
Now we are launching construction of the motorway connecting Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod and Kazan. For the next three or four years, it will be Russia’s largest road project. This motorway is of particular importance for the entire Eurasia. This joint project by Russia, Kazakhstan and China will cover more than 700 km. Over 2,000 km of the 8,500-kilometre road will run through the Russian territory.
Construction of the motorway between Moscow and Kazan is an essential part of the national plan of action to mitigate the consequences of the coronavirus outbreak and to support key sectors of the economy. The road will provide for non-stop fast-moving motor service between four of the eight largest metropolitan areas in Russia: Moscow, Samara and Togliatti, Nizhny Novgorod, and Kazan. This project will give regions an impetus for accelerated development. The aggregate growth of their gross regional product will exceed 500 billion roubles by 2050.
It is noteworthy that the construction project itself will create over 30,000 jobs. Associated industries, such as the automobile industry, petrochemistry, electronics, transport and logistics, retail services and others, will create more than 130,000 jobs as a result.
Transit operations will speed up; major industrial clusters will become more accessible. The infrastructure in the areas surrounding the motorway will be upgraded. Businesses, including small and medium-sized companies, will get a strong stimulus for further development.
In view of the motorway’s important purpose, the Government plans to put M-12 into operation as early as in 2024. We agreed on this deadline today. The total amount of investment is over 650 billion roubles. This investment will bring substantial returns within the first few years after the motorway’s launch.
Colleagues, all our plans must be closely coordinated if we want to complete this project in due course and with maximum productivity. This concerns everybody, from executive bodies, relevant ministries and agencies to the companies that will be directly involved in the construction. Our current task is to identify key aspects of this cooperation and to adopt supporting regulations within the shortest possible term.
I suggest we begin our discussion.
