Approximately Br40 million is planned to be invested in the construction of infrastructure facilities of the FEZ "Vitebsk".
The funds will be directed towards the creation of additional energy capacities, a water supply facility, and the construction of railway access roads in sector N1 "Zhurzhevo" on the outskirts of the regional center. The development of the engineering and transport infrastructure of the site will allow attracting at least $165 million in foreign investment in the future and creating about 1000 jobs for projects that are already being implemented or are being processed for registration in the current year. Among the promising ones are investment projects by businessmen from China and Sweden to create a park of woodworking industries, as well as the organization of a biochar production enterprise.
The commissioning of infrastructure facilities will primarily create the necessary conditions for the launch of a chip production plant in 2021. It will become the first production asset of the Lithuanian group of companies VMG in the FEZ "Vitebsk" within the framework of a large-scale project to organize a vertically integrated woodworking complex. The project also includes the creation of facilities for the production of chipboard, furniture, and pellets with an investment volume of about 100 million euros and the creation of at least 700 jobs.
To implement the plans, the administration of the FEZ "Vitebsk" carried out significant organizational work in 2020. As a result, the design of the construction of a 110 kV overhead power line, a 20 MW step-down substation, and a railway branch has been completed using funds from the FEZ development fund and investors. Negotiations with contractors on the supply of materials and equipment have been held. With rhythmic financing, these facilities will be commissioned this year. It is also planned to continue improving the engineering and transport infrastructure at other FEZ sites.
In addition, in 2020, resident enterprises invested about Br195 million in development, which is more than 57% higher than the investment volume in 2019.
A total of 56 investment projects are being implemented in FEZ "Vitebsk" with the participation of investors from 15 countries, including Germany, the Czech Republic, Russia, Poland, Great Britain, the USA, Israel, Cyprus, and Estonia. The average number of employees in the FEZ organizations was about 16.6 thousand people.
FEZ "Vitebsk" was established in 1999 and consists of 16 sectors with a total area of almost 2.8 thousand hectares, eight of which are located in Vitebsk, five in the Orsha district, and one each in Novopolotsk, Postavy, and the Polotsk district.