The Federal Agency for Special Economic Zone Management positively assessed additional plots of the Irkutsk tourist zone on Lake Baikal, while noting infrastructure constraints and the need for further project development. In the Slyudyansky and Olkhonsky districts, the creation of the Baikal Gate special economic zone, attracting investors, and building tourist and sports infrastructure are being discussed, which could create about 10 thousand jobs. Separately, approval was reported for the idea of a training center for winter sports athletes in the Slyudyansky district and for the readiness of federal authorities to support the region's initiatives.

The delegation of the federal agency for the management of special economic zones gave a positive assessment of the additional sites of the Irkutsk tourist zone. Deputy Head of the federal agency Dmitry Fedotkin and Head of the Department for Tourist and Recreational Zones Pavel Kotov visited the Slyudyansky and Olkhonsky districts. Members of the RosSEZ working commission spoke about the results of the trip.
- The impressions are the most positive; in terms of tourism and recreation, Baikal is very attractive. But there are a number of infrastructure constraints on the sites in the Slyudyansky and Olkhonsky districts, so it is still too early to draw conclusions, - said Pavel Kotov. - We are now at the stage of actually familiarizing ourselves with the sites. The next stage is collecting the necessary materials on land issues, environmental restrictions, the cost of infrastructure, comparing budget expenditures and private investments, assessing efficiency, and preparing materials for decision-making.
Minister of Economic Development, Labor and Higher Education of the Irkutsk Region Vladimir Pashkov noted that the regional government and RosSEZ understand that "state resources need to be used as efficiently as possible to achieve results." According to him, as an investor for the SEZ site in the Slyudyansky district, the authorities of the Irkutsk Region are trying to attract the owner of the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill - the Continental Management timber and industrial complex. In addition, two meetings have been held with representatives of the tourism business so that they, in turn, also make efforts to create an SEZ on Baikal. "These are not multibillion-ruble investments, but the contribution of the tourism community can be significant," said Vladimir Pashkov. There are also potential investors among foreign companies, noted Igor Shpakov, head of the Irkutsk territorial office of RosSEZ.
According to the press service of the government of the Irkutsk Region, Deputy Head of the federal agency for the management of special economic zones Dmitry Fedotkin, at a meeting with the First Deputy Governor of the Angara Region Sergei Sokol, said that the agency is ready to support the region's proposal when the materials are considered in the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.
Meanwhile, according to Governor Igor Esipovsky, the Ministry of Sports, Tourism and Youth Policy of the Russian Federation and the relevant sports federations of Russia have approved the creation in the Slyudyansky district of a training center for athletes in winter sports included in the Olympic program.
Initially, it was planned to create such a complex for training Olympic athletes in Krasnoyarsk Krai, but the climatic and some other conditions in the neighboring region, according to Igor Esipovsky, were deemed unsuitable. In addition, the federal agency for the management of special economic zones approved the initiative of the government of the Irkutsk Region to include coastal areas in the Olkhonsky and Slyudyansky districts in the "Gates of Baikal" SEZ. Moreover, the facilities of the special economic zone will be based primarily in these territories. The regional government received a corresponding letter from the head of RosSEZ, Andrey Alpatov, which he sent back on March 23, 2009. "Bolshoye Goloustnoye is not disappearing from the special economic zone plan anywhere," Igor Esipovsky explained. "But the sequence of creating the SEZ is changing. This is facilitated by the situation at the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill: today we understand that it will no longer operate, which means the problem of chemical emissions has been solved. This is an additional incentive for the development of tourism in the Slyudyansky district."
Thanks to the construction of tourism and sports infrastructure facilities in the Slyudyansky district, about 10,000 jobs will be created, making it possible to employ about 1,800 laid-off BPPM workers. "If, on the initiative of the plant owners, we had started this work six months ago, when the enterprise shut down, some projects would already have been implemented," Igor Esipovsky added. "I think that our special economic zone, despite the crisis, will still be created," said the head of the Angara Region. "There is the objective attractiveness of the territory, a certain determination to create infrastructure, and a clear position of the federal authorities. So we have moved away from theoretical debate on this issue and are beginning the practical implementation of the SEZ project," the governor's words are quoted by BaikalLand - the tourist bulletin of the Angara Region.
All these news can be called downright astonishing. Not long ago, the tourism community of the Angara Region (joined by the governor as well) was skeptically trying to convince federal officials of the futility of Bolshoye Goloustnoye as an outpost of Baikal tourism. And even the hottest heads did not dream of "snatching" from the influential head of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Alexander Khloponin, the site for training the Olympic reserve. (By the way, we still need to hear how the neighboring governor will react to the latest news...)
Undoubtedly, if the revision of the zone's parameters continues, many new professional questions will arise. (For example, what kind of "special zone" is this, in which the only "non-special" access to Baikal remains Listvyanka? Wouldn't it be easier then to return to Larisa Zabrodskaya's old, sound idea and declare the entire Baikal an SEZ? And also: what kind of Olympians, really, can train in the Olkhonsky district?...)
However, these are all questions for tomorrow's painstaking discussions. For now, optimists are advised to rejoice at the obvious lobbying successes of the regional authorities. And skeptics - no one forbids them from grumbling that amid the noise of the crisis, Moscow can promise a lot...