Innovations

Everybody talks about St. Petersburg economy clusters nowadays. However, not every Petersburg citizen understands what it is all about. An economy cluster is a set of enterprises of strategic importance in this or that branch (in English “cluster” means “bunch” or “bundle”). Last year specialists summarized achievements of Petersburg “cluster development” on our newspaper pages.

City Committee for Economic Development, Industrial Policy and Trade Chairman Eugene Yelin reported “Sankt-Peterburgskie vedomosti” correspondent on latest accomplishments in this way.

Evgeniy Ivanovich, where clusters in city economy appeared from in general?

The cluster approach to city development is based on successful experience of developed countries. Saint-Petersburg is a city with diversified economy, thus combining enterprises of different branches, profile research institutes and universities. Few years ago Saint-Petersburg government established several directions which could become locomotives of city economy in future. They are called clusters.

Now automobile, shipbuilding and pharmaceutical clusters are going through the most intensive development. Also a powerful information and communication cluster is created in the city – up to 60% of Russia IT-sector companies resident right in Saint-Petersburg. The city on Neva is one of Russian leaders in IT development. One more perspective activity is radiology, which is a new branch for not only domestic, but for world medicine.

The city economy has been growing steadily since the end of 2009: only within five months of 2011 industrial output increased for 18% as compared to the last year’s previous period. At that those very branches we discussed above have shown the most intensive growth. For example, car production within the period indicated has increased more than fourfold, and amounted to 78.8 thousand of cars. It is more than for the whole 2010!

- The automobile cluster became the first economy sector formed by focused effort of the city government...

So far the first stage of automobile cluster has been realized – factories of car assembling and components output have been put in operation. At the second stage which we plan to finish by 2020, it is necessary to increase the level of regional localization and create centers of research-and-development activity (R&D).

Last year an important event for automobile cluster happened at Saint-Petersburg international Innovative Forum: an agreement was signed between General Motors and city government on development of sci-tech and engineering potential of the city. The agreement implicates participation of leading city technical universities in applicable innovation projects of city automobile industry. We hope that other companies will come forward too to city’s offer of mutual cooperation in development, research and elaboration sphere.

- What is the progress of “newborn” Petersburg’s pharmaceutical cluster?

- During the last Saint-Petersburg Economic Forum Economy Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina and Petersburg Governor Valentina Matvienko laid the foundation for “Novartis” Company – one of the biggest world players of the sphere. The construction is planned to finish in 2014.

Also an agreement is signed between the City Government and the biopharmaceutical company “AstraZeneca”. It implies interchange of experience in the sphere of biomedicine, and attraction of leading research and educational organizations of the city to the company’s new research center activity in Saint-Petersburg.

Not all pharmaceutical cluster enterprises have been constructed yet, though this branch has shown steady growth already. In followup of 2010, industrial production index in chemical industry amounted for 124%. These results are greatly due to the pharmaceutical cluster: medications’ production in Saint-Petersburg has increased almost in fourth.

- Developing perspective economy clusters means construction of not only factories, but scientific and promotional centers and industrial parks. How is it going here?

- Our task is to develop not only high-technology plants but to cooperate closely with scientific organizations. The city on the Neva is the second scientific and educational center after Moscow, where about 10% of country’s scientific potential is concentrated. It is in Petersburg, where highest concentration of technical and engineering universities exists, and we have the Inter-university Scientific Center, that collaborates actively with pharmaceutical cluster enterprises.

Technopark and business incubator “Ingria” is still undergoing construction, with about 50 resident companies so far. A new impulse to this project development will cause local residence of the largest world companies, namely, the software leader Microsoft. The construction is planned to end completely as soon as in 2015.

Saint-Petersburg has become one of the regions of an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) functioning. EEZ “Saint-Petersburg” is located in two areas in different parts of the city: “Novo-Orlovskaya” in Primorskiy district and “Neudorf” in Petrodvorets district. It makes it possible to choose a site ideal for someone or other production.

What leading world companies are attracted by in Saint-Petersburg?

- In my opinion, by a good investment climate of our city. For example, most pharmaceutical cluster enterprises chose Petersburg for reason: to attract them to our city the regional legislation has been changed. Particularly, investment threshold has been reduced from 3 bln to 800 mln roubles.

Establishment of the above zone played a significant role too. There’s a special customs treatment in its territory, insurance contributions are reduced substantially as well as income tax. VAT, wealth tax and land tax are absent. Such a regime allows to attract advanced domestic and foreign innovation companies to Petersburg.

What clusters will appear in city economy in future?

- A list of clusters is a dogma, but we live in changing world. It might be that new economic reality demand establishment of some production facilities that are faint or even do not exist on present Petersburg industrial map. Could anybody guess 10 years ago that Petersburg would become an automobile industry capital, where world car and cargo transport producers would locate their production sites?

Today a few tens of regions have declared beginning of pharmaceutical clusters establishment. However, life is such that most of them most likely will in stay in word only. To make it true a great work of a professional team of people who understand the particularity of the matter needs.

That’s why it’s not the time yet to speculate on clusters of the future. One thing to be stressed is that outlines of the future city economy are being drawn today in our universities. That is the reason why the development of education, research and technology keeps our primary attention.

Source: Sankt-Peterburgskie vedomosti