Dec 08, 2021
December 8, 2021 The business mission of Business Russia to EXPO 2020 finished
The business mission of Business Russia to the World Exhibition EXPO-2020 finished. The key event of the delegation's five-day stay in the UAE was participation in the international forum "Russia: Driving the Future" and holding its own panel session dedicated to the development of the power industry. In addition, the delegation of Russian entrepreneurs took part in the celebrations within the framework of the National Day of Russia at EXPO-2020, got acquainted with the work of the country pavilions of the exhibition and visited the Free and Industrial Zone of Khalifa Abu Dhabi (KIZAD), where the concept of the Business Russia Trade House was presented.
The business mission of Business Russia in the UAE took place alongside with significant dates for both countries. On December 2, the UAE celebrated one of the most important national holidays — the 50th anniversary of the formation of the United Arab Emirates, and on December 3-4, the National Day of Russia was held at the EXPO-2020 World Exhibition, as part of which the international forum «The Russia Forum: Driving the Future» was organized.
The forum identified the key trends in the development of Russia's international relations on the world stage. The forum brought together the representatives of the business and political elite of the UAE and Russia, the representatives of leading Russian and international companies. The forum was attended by Denis Manturov, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, Sergey Sobyanin, Mayor of Moscow, Arkady Dvorkovich, Chairman of the Skolkovo Foundation, Alexey Likhachev, CEO of Rosatom State Corporation, Nazim Efendiev, CEO of Metalloinvest Management Company, Igor Shuvalov, Chairman of the State Development Corporation VEB.RF and many others.
On December 3, as part of the business program of the forum, a panel session of Business Russia — «New Age Energy: Global trends, challenges and opportunities» was held at the National Pavilion of Russia. The discussion on the development of green generation, issues of sustainable development and energy efficiency was attended by Sergey Semenov, Vice President of the consulting practice in the field of sustainable development in Eastern Europe of Schneider Electric, Vadim Titov, President of Rusatom - International Network, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Titan Group of Companies JSC, Mikhail Sutyaginsky, member of the Coordinating Council of Business Russia, Viktor Khaykov, President of the National Association of Oil and Gas Services, Alexey Poroshin, Managing Partner of the investment and consulting group First, member of the General Council of Business Russia, and Boris Marcinkevich, editor-in-chief of the online publication Geoenergetics INFO.
Moderator of the discussion, Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the UAE, President of Distributed Power Generation Association Maksim Zagornov noted that the outgoing year, which was associated with a new wave of the pandemic, revealed quite clearly traceable trends — a strict environmental agenda agreed by most countries of the world; a general trend towards energy transition; the introduction of new technologies aimed at reducing the carbon footprint; economic development in the conditions of the coronacrisis – a business request for savings.
«All this has posed new challenges to society and business. Energy efficiency was designated as a major goal at the state level. Entrepreneurs, regulators, professional industry communities are constantly searching for new, technically and economically feasible solutions. And one of such solutions is distributed and renewable energy», underlined Maksim Zagornov.
On December 4, the delegation of Business Russia also took part in the Plenary session of the business forum «The Russia Forum: driving the future» and the Moscow Government conference in Dubai. During the events, negotiations were held with representatives of key ministries of the Russian Federation, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, governors of Russian regions, investors, entrepreneurs.
One of the highlights of the business mission was the participation of the Business Russia delegation in the official opening ceremony of the National Day of Russia at EXPO-2020, a gala dinner under the largest Ferris wheel, which these days was painted in the colors of the Russian flag, as well as a reception of the Moscow Government in the Burj Khalifa Tower. These events became the most effective networking platform, allowed us to establish useful contacts and connections.
On December 5, the delegation of Business Russia in the UAE visited the Khalifa Free and Industrial Zone (KIZAD). The Director Commercial of KIZAD Khalid Al Marzooqi held a meeting with Russian entrepreneurs. The Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the UAE, Maksim Zagornov, presented the concept of the Business Russia Trade House in the UAE, which is scheduled to open on the territory of KIZAD in the near future. The Trade house will provide comprehensive support for bringing the companies of the business association to the Emirati market: from the targeted selection of partners to the conclusion of a contract and the delivery and storage of goods.
The Khalifa Zone (KIZAD) has unique transport accessibility. There are direct sea routes from the port of Khalifa to 70 international ports, it is a logistics hub for more than 1,000 sea routes. The railway line will be brought up soon. All this makes the Khalifa zone a convenient platform for localization of production or organization of export to the UAE, as well as re-export to other countries.
In addition to a rich business program, a series of cultural and sporting events took place within the framework of the business mission: a visit to the key architectural attractions of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, a hockey match of the KHL regular season between Avangard and Ak Bars. All this made it possible for the members of Business Russia to communicate in an informal setting, strengthen business and personal contacts, and discuss prospects for joint projects.
