Rogozhnik: Innoprom is a step towards technological independence of Union State

According to the minister, companies affiliated with the Industry Ministry signed contracts worth a total of over RUB17 billion at the expo. “Yet, it is not only about contracts. An agreement on the development of the machine tool industry was signed on the sidelines of the exhibition. This is a fairly comprehensive document, and this is just the beginning. This is another small step towards the technological independence of our Union State,” he said.

Speaking about large-scale projects discussed at the expo, the minister noted that an agreement was signed between Pnevmostroymashina from Russia's Yekaterinburg and BelAZ on launching a joint venture to make hydraulic pumps at the Kuzlitmash company in Belarus' Pinsk. “These are unique products that used to be delivered from Germany. We have replaced them and are supplying them not only to BelAZ, but also to other industrial enterprises of our republic,” he said. “We complement each other and do not compete.”

An agreement in the aircraft industry was also signed on the sidelines of the expo, Aleksandr Rogozhnik added. “This document provides for the development of competencies in civil aircraft making in Belarus,” he said.

The agreements concluded during the international exhibition in Yekaterinburg have great prospects, including at the regional level, the minister noted. “We kept working at the regional level - this task was set by the head of state. Having returned from Innoprom, I will visit Kemerovo next week, where I am going to meet with the governor. Such work is ongoing,” said Aleksandr Rogozhnik. “We met with representatives of a large number of Russian regions on the sidelines of the expo, including Rostov Oblast, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Perm Territory, and many others. Of course, during the discussion, we meticulously studied all areas of bilateral cooperation: mechanical engineering, light industry, petrochemical complex. All these topics are discussed substantively and are later implemented in line with respective road maps,” he said.

The participants of the Innoprom exhibition included not only representatives of Belarus and Russia. “Taking part in discussions were high-ranking officials representing the industrial sector of the EAEU countries. At these meetings we discussed the joint industrial development program for 2025-2030. All participants expressed interest. We will start developing such a program, we will focus on new high-tech industries such as microelectronics, shipbuilding, aircraft industry, machine tool industry. Such issues were raised during the international exhibition,” the industry minister said.

The International Industrial Fair Innoprom was held in Yekaterinburg from 10 to 13 July. Belarus was a partner country at the expo for the first time.