Investment leadership: an infrastructure for ideas and innovation

The results of the National Rating of the investment Climate in the regions of Russia were announced at the XXVIII St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Moscow has become the leader again. Since 2019, the Russian capital has consistently taken the first place in the rating. The city authorities emphasize that such recognition is possible primarily due to the trust and active participation of the business community. The rating differs significantly from a simple list of regions in terms of the volume of investments attracted or the number of projects implemented: its main task is to assess the efforts of the authorities to create favorable business conditions and support new initiatives.

The foundation for the long-term well-being of the city

A comprehensive system of measures to support entrepreneurs is being implemented in Moscow. These include tax benefits and land lease preferences for the implementation of large-scale investment projects. Due to this, the capital is becoming an increasingly attractive platform for doing business.

Of particular note is the dynamics of investment activity in Moscow: since 2020, the volume of investments in fixed assets has more than doubled, reaching 8.1 trillion rubles by the end of 2024. This is facilitated by both the creation of new and the development of existing high-tech industries, which plays a key role on the way to the technological sovereignty of the country. Today, more than 4,500 enterprises operate in the capital, of which one in three is engaged in high-tech production.

Last year, production in Moscow's manufacturing industry increased by almost 18%. Among the industry leaders are enterprises producing optics and electronics, electrical products, as well as medical instruments and equipment.

Positive trends continue in 2025. Already in the first quarter, the volume of investments in fixed assets exceeded 1.2 trillion rubles.

Construction projects lay the foundation for the long-term well-being and competitiveness of the city.

— More than 100 large-scale industrial investment projects are currently being implemented in Moscow, they will give the city about 60 thousand jobs. For several years now, as part of the program of large-scale investment projects (MAIP), the city has been leasing land plots to investors for five years on special terms, starting in 2022 the rate has become preferential and amounts to 1 ruble per year. In return, businesses locate new or expand existing enterprises, said Anatoly Garbuzov, Minister of the Moscow Government and head of the Investment and Industrial Policy Department.

When the program started in 2016, in order to receive a plot under the IAP, the investor had to independently develop a project concept, guarantee the required amount of investment, plus obtain the approval of the Urban Planning and Land Commission for the provision of the site. But, the department stressed, the rules were relaxed last year: now the city provides land plots on simplified terms — by auction. The auction winner enters into a project implementation agreement and leases the land at a discounted rate. At the same time, local authorities independently determine the area of the future enterprise, the list of industries for the construction of factories and prepare the necessary package of documents for the land.

Starting in 2024, land plots for the construction of industries such as electronics, automotive, and pharmaceuticals will be put up for auction, the department added. Plus, the city attracts investments in the food, construction and light industries.

Any company can participate in the project if it is not in the process of liquidation or bankruptcy, suspension of activities, and its property has not been seized, they explained. Of course, a legal entity should have a successful experience in building a capital facility, the area of which is comparable to the new plans, and the company's revenue over the past five years should amount to at least 10% of the investment in the IPM.

As part of the IAP, three new high-tech enterprises were commissioned in the capital in 2024. For example, a workshop of a Moscow manufacturer of high-speed elevators has opened. Plus, at the beginning of 2024, the Krekshino industrial technopark was put into operation. Since the launch of the program, eight new enterprises have appeared in the capital, with about 4,000 new jobs. These are the food, automotive, construction, and light industries, as well as technology parks.

For example, in ZelAO and TiNAO, at a discounted rental rate of 1 ruble per year, over the past three years, the city has provided more than 90 hectares for the construction of industrial and production facilities, including as part of the creation of food and construction clusters.

There are simply no examples in the world when such diverse projects have been effectively implemented in one city, and in such a short time, Alexey Kuchmin, a member of the Business Russia Coordinating Council, told Izvestia. Moscow is a true flagship for the development of various industries, not only for the country, but for the whole world. Investment projects are making the metropolis more comfortable to live in and more efficient for business, he stressed.

Most of the world's countries have chosen a different direction for their development: As a rule, the functionality of cities is divided, Vladimir Gamza, head of the CCI Council for Financial, Industrial and Investment Policy, told Izvestia.

"Moscow has followed its own development vector: in addition to a city that actively invests in its comfort, our capital is also developing as an industrial center,— he said.

Of course, all this turns the Russian capital into a special center of attraction, the expert added. Moscow and the region now account for about 20% of the country's total population, and this status poses more and more serious challenges for the city and its authorities.

The city's multitasking is supported, among other things, by the Employment Opportunities Program (MPT). With it, developers create places of employment for people, and the city gives businesses a benefit in the construction of residential buildings.

More than 6 million square meters. m non-residential real estate under the program will be built in the near future. These are industrial parks, business centers, schools, kindergartens, clinics and sports centers.

In total, the city will receive more than 230 facilities and 310 thousand new jobs, with total investments in projects exceeding 2.2 trillion rubles.

How the "15-minute city" concept is being implemented in the capital

The authorities decided to use a more balanced development of the megalopolis areas. We are talking about the concept of a "15-minute city" where a person can find everything they need for life — from shops and schools to sports and cultural centers — within walking distance. At the same time, jobs are created outside the city center: this approach reduces the pendulum migration, creates a comfortable environment for people, Anatoly Garbuzov notes.

"Thanks to the construction of modern factories and technology parks outside the city center, engineers, designers, technologists, developers and other highly qualified specialists from almost all industries can find work near home," Anatoly Garbuzov added. —Since the launch of the program in 2020, five industrial facilities have already been commissioned in the capital, which have created about 5,000 jobs."

This program has a positive impact on the city's economy, people's working conditions and the quality of life of citizens, Alexey Kuchmin, a member of the Business Russia coordinating council, told Izvestia. The program has become a real driving force for the development of the commercial real estate market.

As for the development of the capital as an industrial site, following the results of a difficult year for the economy in 2022, Moscow topped the ranking of the largest ten megacities in the world in terms of industrial production growth, he recalled.

— One of the key goals of the program is the formation of new centers of attraction and a balanced living environment for people, including in areas with established buildings. It is noteworthy that among the total area of facilities implemented under the program, a part is occupied by social facilities. Now it is not necessary to travel to the center for work, study, or for interesting leisure activities. All this can be found in your neighborhood," said Alexey Kuchmin. — This will reduce the so-called pendulum migration, when huge flows of people go to the center for work in the morning and return home in the evening, seriously increasing the load on Moscow's transport system.

The expert recalled that the pandemic, which began in 2020, has taught the world a lot, including pushing for the decentralization of cities. Although the trend itself originated much earlier, for example, in the 1970s in Singapore, experts calculated how the placement of various facilities in the city would avoid the concentration of business activity in the center. Subcenters are now popular in the modern world urbanism — areas remote from the central part of the city are beginning to function as a "city within a city".