«The project is indeed very important and complex. Not an easy one from a technological point of view. It is a project in which there are no unimportant elements. That is why the discussion was tough and principled,» Nikolai Snopkov said.
According to him, all the conclusions of the state supervisory bodies are currently in place, allowing the enterprise to be commissioned and to reach a production capacity of 1 million tonnes of potassium chloride per year. «But there are unfinished items — thermal insulation, matters under the emergencies ministry, electrical work. Yet the facility is operating,» the first deputy prime minister said.
He said the president was not satisfied with this state of affairs. «He demanded that the enterprise be brought to perfection and only then commissioned,» Nikolai Snopkov said. «That does not mean we will stop the enterprise. This year it will already produce half a million tonnes of potassium chloride for the country. That is export revenue.»
The first deputy prime minister also said that, in line with previously set plans, an operating capacity of 2 million tonnes of potash fertilizers per year will be reached by 31 December 2027. «Potash is important for the country. Export revenue from 2 million tonnes at current prices is somewhere around an additional $500-600 million for our country’s foreign currency coffers,» he said.
«The requirement of quality, the requirement of unconditional compliance with all the parameters of the project, are becoming the top priority. Because people’s life and health are more important than anything. That is why the president has set the main task — the quality of all the work performed. From the anti-corrosion coating of the metal to the mining equipment. That is what we will be doing within the framework of the investment project,» Nikolai Snopkov stressed.
The implementation of the project is expected to give an impetus to the development of Lyuban District in general. «The enterprise is ready to provide every kind of assistance, including financial, including within the framework of the remaining Chinese credit line of the State Development Bank of China for any projects that Minsk Oblast proposes in the strategy for the development of Lyuban District,» the first deputy prime minister said.
OAO Nedra Nezhin is already implementing some projects not directly related to fertilizer production. For example, the enterprise has planted 18 hectares of fruit orchard, and next spring it plans to plant another 25 hectares. In future, on the areas where the construction camp is now located (about 20 hectares), plans are in place to put greenhouses for growing vegetables, berries and hothouse flowers. There is spare energy capacity available for this.
