Translated material
System problems
Vladimir Putin once again demanded to simplify procedures for developers
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin yesterday held a meeting of the government commission on regional development in Volgograd on the topic of reducing administrative barriers in construction. In the region, the prime minister also visited two facilities - the mining and processing complex of the Eurochem company at the Gremyachinskoye potash deposit and the Yantarny Gorod microdistrict under construction for military personnel.Located approximately 200 km from Volgograd, near the city of Kotelnikovo, the Gremyachinskoye deposit of potassium salts is one of the largest in Russia in terms of reserves, the development and construction of mining and processing production on the basis of the deposit is being carried out by one of the leading producers of mineral fertilizers in the country, the Eurochem holding. . Gremyachinskoye will become only the second potassium salt deposit to be developed in Russia, the first being Verkhnekamskoye, in the development of which Eurochem will also take part. The company has acquired licenses for two sites, the launch of production is scheduled for 2014-2015. The company has already invested more than 15 billion rubles in the development of the Gremyachinskoye deposit, the total costs are estimated at 85.5 billion, the launch of the first stage of the mining and processing plant is scheduled for 2013. But the benefit for the holding is obvious - after the launch of this complex, Eurochem will become the first company in Russia (and the fourth in the world) to produce the entire range of mineral fertilizers; potassium fertilizers will be added to the existing production of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers. The benefits for the region are also obvious; expected annual tax revenues could reach more than 10 billion rubles, thus, the Volgograd region could become a “donor” region, whereas now the region is on the list of “subsidies.” In addition, the company promises to provide jobs for up to four thousand people.
Vladimir Putin examined the stands with models of the future plant, the company’s general director Dmitry Strezhnev showed how it is planned to develop the city of Kotelnikovo, at the same time asking for 9 billion rubles. public funds for social infrastructure. The prime minister wanted to make sure that the company was ready to invest his own personal money - the head of government went to Kotelnikovo and inspected the houses for workers being built at EuroChem's expense.
The head of government continued his immersion in the construction topic in Volgograd itself. Before the meeting, the head of government decided to study the issue using a practical example - in the "Amber City" microdistrict under construction for military personnel and their families. True, this is rather an uncharacteristic example - the construction is being carried out within the framework of the all-Russian state program to provide housing for the military. And yet, the head of the development company, Vadim Kalinin, told Vladimir Putin that the plot of land on which construction is being carried out was acquired three years ago, but construction began only last year. Reason: violation of current legislation - the necessary communications were not connected to the site. “All this leads to an increase in construction costs by more than five thousand per square meter. In addition, there are no clear rules and tariffs for connections to utility networks, which seriously complicates and slows down construction,” said Mr. Kalinin.
At the construction site, the prime minister had another meeting - with a native of Guinea-Bissau, Joaquim Ritu Kabi Krima (Vasily Krima), who ran for the post of head of the Sredneakhtubinsky district from the United Russia party in the fall of 2009. As local media previously reported, Mr. Krima, on his own and with the support of neighbors, repaired Komsomolskaya Street in Srednyaya Akhtuba before Mr. Putin’s arrival. As it turned out, the United Russia member has a dream - to rename the street in honor of the party leader, but his comrade-in-arms was apparently embarrassed to tell Vladimir Putin personally about this. The head of government invited his fellow party member to a meeting.
The problem of administrative barriers in construction has long been in the government’s field of attention; meetings on this topic are held no matter how regularly, but without success. “Nevertheless, the remaining administrative barriers, limiting competition and reducing the efficiency of the investment and construction sector, lead to significant financial losses for business, a deterioration in the business climate and a whole range of socio-economic problems,” she justified before the meeting in Volgograd the need to strengthen the fight against barriers Press service of the Cabinet of Ministers.
Formally, a lot has been done: the time frame for issuing permits for construction and commissioning of residential buildings has been reduced, the list of works requiring special permission has been reduced, 218 organizations have been allowed to conduct non-state examinations, a list of mandatory standards in construction has been approved, a new pricing system has been developed, mechanisms have been developed for transferring construction turnover of federal lands. Deputy Minister of Regional Development Sergei Kruglik was recently sacrificed to the process of improving the administrative base of the construction industry, who was fired for failing to adopt standards to reduce prices in the construction industry. Further work to reduce barriers will be based on an action plan to improve control, supervision and permitting functions and optimize the provision of public services in the field of urban planning.
At the meeting, the head of government demanded that administrative costs be minimized—in particular, that developers be connected to power grids free of charge. Vladimir Putin indignantly reported that the costs of processing documentation in Russia are forty times higher than the average costs for OECD countries. The Prime Minister called the division of land into categories one of the most corrupt areas, demanding that order be established and approaches to the allocation of land plots be unified. The head of government indicated that the time frame for approving documentation will be reduced from 90 to 60 days, but this does not mean that if comments arise, the countdown must begin again. And he promised to disqualify officials who obstruct developers.
Then, most of the governors who participated in the meeting had the opportunity to report on their successes in eliminating administrative barriers for builders. But not a single report satisfied the prime minister - the head of government read out complaints from a list: protracted deadlines for permitting procedures, low construction rates.
The head of the Volgograd branch of the public organization "Business Russia" Roman Sozarukov directly pointed out that in the city the registration of plots drags on for years, auctions are almost never held, the lands are allocated to their own. The social activist threatened that rallies could begin. But the prime minister, despite the fact that he himself had criticized the Volgograd governor Anatoly Brovko a little earlier, still did not advise the entrepreneur to bring it to public appearances, noting that “there are other mechanisms.” However, another mechanism already tested by Mr. Sozarukov - an appeal to the public reception of the United Russia party - also did not produce results.
In general, despite the prime minister’s seemingly critical remarks about the governors who spoke, it was not noticeable that the latter were very frightened and were ready to work tirelessly on reducing administrative barriers immediately upon returning to their regions. Everyone had their own explanations for the not very favorable state of affairs. Thus, the head of the Ulyanovsk region Sergei Morozov used a public opportunity to settle scores with the mayor of the city - in response to accusations of delaying procedures, the governor blamed everything on the costs of the Soviet hardening of the head of the regional center.
Desperate to get the truth from at least anyone, the prime minister entrusted the same Vasily Krima with summarizing the meeting, turning to him with the question of where it is better to work - in Africa or Russia. “It depends on the person - if he wants, he can cope everywhere,” AfroUnited Russia seems to have concluded as a reproach to Russian entrepreneurs.