The Russian government plans to increase the domestic production of aquaculture to 300,000 tonnes by 2020 and also plans to attract investors to the industry, reports Eugene Gerden.
According to a recent decree by Russia’s prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev, from now on new zones for fish growing in Russia will be allocated through auctions, instead of by tender.
According to Russia’s government, this will make the existing distribution scheme more transparent and will contribute to its more effective use. The new rules will involve mandatory payment of a deposit for participation in the auctions, which will eliminate the "unscrupulous players" and unpromising projects.
They will also involve the state setting the volume and types of production - contrary to the previous scheme, where the type and volume of production were defined by the producers themselves. According to Russia’s deputy prime minister, Arkady Dvorkovich, the introduction of these condition will not allow big players to monopolise the market.
The auctions will be organised by the Russian Federal Fisheries Agency, which will ensure stricter control.
Aquaculture production in Russia is currently estimated at 140,000 tonnes of fish, of which 80% is the production of carp. It is planned that over the coming years the volume of production will be increased up to 300,000 tonnes.
