Technopolis Moscow wins six Global Free Zones of the Year awards

The Special Economic Zone Technopolis Moscow has won six Bespoke Awards of the annual Global Free Zones of the Year competition held by the Financial Times’ fDi Magazine. These categories are Cluster Development, COVID-19 Support, PPP, Real Estate Flexibility, Red Tape Reduction and Workforce Amenities.

Vladimir Yefimov, Deputy Moscow Mayor for Economic Policy and Property and Land Relations, noted that it was the first time that Technopolis Moscow had taken part in the competition of the world’s special economic zones.

“As many as 100 free zones that entered the competition were assessed in 80 categories. The experts praised the achievements of Technopolis Moscow, including when it came to local manufacturing under offset agreements, which have been estimated at $150 million. The free zone has also been commended for its contribution to the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, Technopolis Moscow halved rental rates for 100 tenants in order to enable stable business activity during the period of temporary restrictions, which allowed the companies concerned to save some 50 million roubles between April and June and to adapt their manufacturing facilities to the production of the goods the city needed,” Vladimir Yefimov pointed out.

Other important criteria for assessing the applications were investment appeal and development opportunities.

“The resident companies of Technopolis Moscow from any beneficiary country are offered equal tax incentives, duty free import access, long-term leases at a reduced rate, real estate flexibility and transport accessibility of the main clients and large warehouses. This helps to attract new investors and also to expand the existing facilities as well,” Head of the Department of Investment and Industrial Policy Alexander Prokhorov noted.

The rating’s organisers mentioned the opportunities of the free zone’s infrastructure, its area and available amenities, as well as its cooperation with the leading educational establishments. Director General of Technopolis Moscow Gennady Dyogtev pointed out that the free zone’s victory in six categories was the best result among Russian participants since 2014.

The Global Free Zones of the Year is the only ranking of free zones that has been recognised internationally and is published regularly. Moscow has been rated highly in several other rankings by fDi Intelligence in 2020.

“Moscow was ranked among the top five European Cities of the Future for human capital and business friendliness and top 10 cities for economic potential and cost effectiveness. Moscow has also made it into the top 20 European cities with the most promising high-tech, innovation and startup investment opportunities. According to the Tech Cities of the Future ranking survey, the Russian capital ranks 18th among 76 cities,” Kirill Purtov, Moscow Government Minister and Head of the Department of Economic Policy and Development, added.

The Special Economic Zone Technopolis Moscow comprises five platforms with a total area of over 200 hectares in Pechatniki and Alabushevo and at the companies Micron, Angstrom and National Research University of Electronic Technology (MIET). Over 180 high-tech companies are operating in the zone, which has both greenfield and brownfield territories.