Fruitful year along the Silk Road

Top managers of the Great Stone Industrial Park summarised the project’s achievements in 2024

In the past year, the Great Stone Industrial Park continued to grow with new residents. The total volume of declared investments from new investors exceeded $90m. New startups also emerged, beginning operations in the R&D centre of the megaproject. Furthermore, the second phase of construction commenced in 2024, during which key logistics infrastructure facilities will be built. We have learnt more about the results of the industrial park’s activities and plans for 2025.

Great Stone pays special attention to demonstrating its capabilities at major congress and exhibition events 

Favourable business climate

Aleksandr Yaroshenko, Head of Great Stone China-Belarus Industrial Park Administration, noted that 2024 was a fruitful year for the project, “I can describe the dynamics of residents as high: 30 new companies joined the park with a total volume of declared investments exceeding $90m. The number of startups has also increased, with five entities of innovative activity registered.”  According to him, there are currently 144 residents operating in the Great Stone Industrial Park. The total volume of declared investments stands at $1.5bn. In total, 53 park’s residents produce goods, provide services, and conduct research and development. Twelve companies commenced economic activities last year. The average salary of resident workers at the end of the year exceeded Br3,500. “The export of goods from the park’s residents amounted to $156m. Products from the Great Stone enterprises were supplied to 19 countries worldwide,” emphasised the head of the administration.
Aleksandr Yaroshenko also highlighted that the Great Stone Industrial Park combines advanced foreign experience with our country’s expertise in creating and developing economic zones,

“The business climate here is among the best, based on several key factors. These include ongoing work on legislation that improves conditions for investors and attracts new project participants. Another factor is the administrative support for businesses and the swift resolution of all issues related to the operations of residents through the One Station comprehensive service centre.

The presence of excellent infrastructure is also significant, including ready-to-use production facilities, land plots equipped with all necessary utilities, as well as housing rental options for employees and improved transport links.”  

Strengthening clusters

According to the head of the Great Stone administration, several clusters have already formed in the park. The largest of those today are in the fields of machine engineering and medicine, “Currently, around 10 investment projects in machine engineering are being developed. It is expected that these companies will become residents this year. Work is also underway on several medical projects. This area is very promising for the park, and we plan to actively develop it with our partners from China and domestic organisations and agencies.”
The head of the administration remarked that the industrial park maintains its international character. Companies from the EU and the USA continue to operate here. Any investor will always choose the business site that offers them the most advantageous and comfortable conditions. The Great Stone Industrial Park provides some of the best conditions and remains open to investors from any country in the world.
Overall, discussing plans for the current year, Aleksandr Yaroshenko stated that by the end of 2025, the number of residents in Great Stone should increase to 170, “It is planned that the number of employees among residents will exceed 5,000. The actual total investments in the implementation of the park’s projects will amount to over $1bn, while the export of goods and services from the park’s residents will be valued at $360m.”

Second phase commenced  

In turn, Kirill Koroteyev, First Deputy Director General of SZAO Industrial Park Development Company, spoke about the progress of construction works on the project’s site in 2024, “Last year, we commenced work on the second phase of the park’s construction. All preparatory works have been completed. Everything we were supposed to do with our own funds has been accomplished. After receiving credit resources from the Chinese side in the near future, we will scale up this construction. This will happen this year.”   
According to him, active work on the construction of a multimodal terminal on a 41-hectare site will take place in 2025. It is expected to be completed in 2026.  
Speaking about the construction of standard production buildings, which are in high demand from businesses, Kirill Koroteyev noted that the construction of the 11th such facility was completed in December 2024, “This production building has an area of 12,000 square metres. In total, over 102,000 square metres of standard production buildings have now been constructed in Great Stone. Work in 2024 demonstrated that they remain relevant and are extremely sought after.” Such buildings will continue to be constructed in the park until 2030.  
Discussing the construction being carried out by residents on the park’s land plots, Kirill Koroteyev reported that approximately 58 hectares of space were leased or sold in 2024, “Last year was a record year in terms of the volume of land transactions in Great Stone. Of this total, 41 hectares account for the railway terminal, but the rest consists of land plots for individual productions. I can say that the market for capital-intensive projects requiring land for construction revived in 2024. By the beginning of 2025, we had completed transactions on at least 10 hectares of land.”   

Showcasing achievements   

This year, Great Stone will pay special attention to attracting residents and demonstrating their achievements. According to Kirill Koroteyev, in 2025, the industrial park will showcase its capabilities at major congress and exhibition events organised with the support of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the National Centre for Marketing and Price Study, “Among them are the 12th Forum of Regions of Belarus and Russia in Nizhny Novgorod, the INNOPROM. Belarus exhibition in Minsk, dedicated to machine engineering, metalworking, scientific and technical developments, and energy. We will also attend the Russian Healthcare Week in Moscow, the healthcare exhibition in Minsk, the TIBO International Forum on Information and Communication Technologies, and other industry events. Additionally, the Belarusian Agro-Industrial Week will take place on the territory of the industrial park.”  
Within the Chinese block of exhibition events, a visit is planned to the China International Fair for Investment & Trade scheduled for September 8th-11th. “Furthermore, we will attend the China International Import Expo, which will be held on November 5th-10th, as well as the China — Eurasia Expo, in China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. In mid-July, we will participate in the China International Supply Chain Promotion Expo, followed by the SCO Trade and Economic Forum. Since this year China is the chair country in the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation, there will also be many events within the SCO in which the park will participate. We will also conduct a roadshow in cities such as Qingdao, Chongqing, Tianjin, and the provinces of Guangdong, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Jilin, and Liaoning,” shared Kirill Koroteyev.

By Ilya Kryzhevich