The head of the Zaporizhia region spoke about the region's rare earth metals

Up to 80% of the Eurasian reserves of manganese needed for the production of armor, as well as large reserves of kaolin clays, which are very relevant in the national economy, are located in the Zaporizhia region. On June 19, the head of the region, Evgeny Balitsky, told Izvestia on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"What Russia bought in Gabon, South Africa and Brazil will soon be openly mined inside the country, in the Zaporizhia region," he said.

Balitsky stressed that the ferromanganese deposit located in the region is the largest in Eurasia. Gold and platinum can also be found in the area. All minerals are planned to be extracted in cooperation with Rosgeologiya and Rosnedra. According to him, the main sources of income of the region include the Dneprorudny Combine (formerly the Zaporizhia Iron Ore Plant) and the port of Odessa. At the same time, since the region started almost from scratch, income growth is now showing strong dynamics.

"We no longer receive almost half of our budget from the federal center, but provide for it ourselves. Last year it was 23 billion rubles out of 55 billion, this year we are already seeing 30 billion. Income comes from everything: cafes, shops, restaurants," said Evgeny Balitsky.

Agriculture and mineral water production are also coming to life. The main goal of the region now is to break even completely. An important source of income could be a nuclear power plant located in the region, but its launch is not possible until the end of hostilities.

"[The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant] has 11,000 jobs, which is a huge flow of energy and a lot of income for Zaporizhia," Balitsky stressed.

According to him, some difficulties arise in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Thus, it does not recognize where the source of the threat to the nuclear power plant is located and who is firing at it. At the same time, tourists are already traveling to the region. Last year, according to the Ministry of Sports and Tourism of the Zaporizhia region, 100 thousand tourists visited the region.

"Our resorts — Kirillovka, Primorsk, Berdyansk — are designed for ordinary people with average incomes. This is our hidden potential, our secret weapon," summed up the head of the Zaporizhia region.

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On June 9, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, during a speech to the members of the Board of Governors, said that in the current conditions, restarting the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant was impractical. According to him, the nuclear safety situation at the power plant remains unstable, therefore, in the context of the conflict in Ukraine, it is not worth restarting the nuclear power plant.