Alexander Tsybulsky told the President about the results of his five years of work as governor of the region. He began his report with work to support participants in the special military operation and their families. Since 2022, the Together We Are Stronger Centre has been working. In particular, vehicles and specialised equipment are shipped to the special military operation zone, and families are provided with help with everyday issues. Of more than 10,000 requests, 99.5 percent have already been fulfilled. The hospital for war veterans is being completely re-equipped, and the construction of a rehabilitation and orthopaedics centre has begun, which will become an interregional centre for the entire northwestern Russia. On the basis of the corporate university of the Arkhangelsk Region Government, a programme for retraining soldiers who will be returning home has been launched.
The Governor said that work with the partner region – the Zaporozhye Region – continues. Over the past two years, 30 facilities there have been repaired, renovated, or well equipped, such as, for example, the paediatric intensive care unit in Melitopol, which can now provide all types of medical care.
The region’s key macroeconomic indicators were discussed. Over five years, GRP has increased by 50 percent from 550 billion to 834 billion rubles. The average annual increase in commissioning of residential buildings is 30 percent, and 453,000 sq m were commissioned last year. The average monthly salary has increased by 50 percent during this time. The industrial production index is seven percent up year-on-year. The volume of investment amounts to 120 billion as of today. Own revenues of the regional budget have almost doubled in five years from 55 billion to 97–98 billion last year. The forecast for this year is about 104.
According to the Governor, such growth is due to the main industries that are developing in the Arkhangelsk Region. First, shipbuilding and ship repairs. Before the sanctions that were imposed against Russia, most ships were serviced and repaired at European ports. When entry there was closed for them, they all returned. In 2020, 180 ships were repaired in the region, and in 2024 already 350. Production facilities are starting to develop, and businesses are starting to invest.
For the first time in 30 years, the Krasnaya Kuznitsa plant has received an order to build four reinforced ice-class passenger vessels. This coming summer, the first two will be commissioned for navigation. This is an extremely important moment, because every year almost one million people use the services of the passenger river transport.
Another critical sector is fishing. Over five years, five new state-of-the-art vessels have been built, with three more ships currently under construction. The fishing fleet has been almost completely overhauled.
Another priority is the seaport. Cargo turnover has risen substantially, with maritime shipments along the Northern Sea Route increasing by 30 percent since 2023. The container route with China is being expanded – a corridor absent for 40 years prior to the inaugural ship entry (Shanghai–Arkhangelsk) in 2023. Last year saw ten ship entries, with up to 20 planned for this year. This revival has established the port’s new expertise in container freight. According to the Governor, it is imperative to seriously consider implementing a strategic project for constructing a new deep-water section at the Arkhangelsk seaport, as this initiative has attracted interest from Rosatom State Corporation and Chinese partners.
Alexander Tsybulsky mentioned another sector – forestry. In 2022, the region became the first pilot area to achieve almost 100 percent forest management. Specifically, an analysis was conducted to determine the quantity and quality of the forest. As a result, the rated wood cutting has increased by six million cubic metres, which amounts to several large investment projects. Additionally, efforts are being made to combat fires: 97 percent of forest fires are extinguished within the first 24 hours. All firefighting units have been fully re-equipped, the personnel is fully staffed, and the region boasts one of the best groups of parachute firefighters. This year, an Arctic training centre for the retraining of forest firefighting units was established, which could serve as a retraining centre for the whole North-West and other regions. The Governor noted that currently there is only one such centre in the Moscow Region.
The discussion also covered the restoration of the timber and pulp and paper industry. In this sector, issues persist with the markets for pellets, previously entirely Europe-bound. Today, redirecting is quite challenging. In particular, there is a restriction on the import of pellets to China. The Governor requested presidential instructions to raise this issue at the intergovernmental level. Domestically, the region has launched the production of mobile pellet boiler plants. These are fully automated and require neither personnel nor maintenance.
The Governor also elaborated on import substitution, specifically mentioning two complex products: in shipbuilding, completely localised manufacturing of pod propulsion systems at the Zvezdochka ship repair centre, and logging harvester heads designed solely by Arkhangelsk specialists. To sustain such advancements, a world-class inter-university campus is being built, whilst an agreement is being developed to create two main centres of excellence in shipbuilding and added-value wood processing.
Alexander Tsybulsky praised the introduction of resident status for companies in the Arctic zone as per the President’s decision. The region has already attracted 32 billion in investment, while as many as 4,200 jobs have been created.
The Governor spoke at length about the progress made in regard to transport, healthcare, training of personnel for medicine and education, construction and renovation of schools, creation of a digital educational environment, and a regional programme to restore swimming pools in schools.
Speaking about housing construction, Alexander Tsybulsky pointed out a major problem with dilapidated housing that is dangerous to use and asked the President for support in reducing the regional co-financing requirement under the relevant state programme. Vladimir Putin agreed that the Arkhangelsk Region is objectively one of those that need more support.
The discussion also touched upon the modernisation of local utility infrastructure and cultural facilities, as well as enhancement of the public gas supply system. In addition, the Governor spoke about the preparations for the 600th anniversary of the Solovki monastic community, where cultural heritage facilities are being renovated. He also mentioned the fact that Kenozersky National Park, a cultural landscape that includes several unique pieces of wooden architecture renovated following a direct instruction by the President, was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2024. He emphasised that, unlike most natural landscapes or selected landmarks, in this case, an ordinary Russian village with its traditions, unique way of life and remaining monuments was put under the UNESCO protection.
Alexander Tsybulsky noted that 2025 marks five years in office for him, which means the Arkhangelsk Region will hold elections. As he considered re-election, it was important for him to know what the President thought about it. He would like to continue his service as head of the region, especially because there are still many problems to address, and there is much to work on.
Vladimir Putin emphasised that unfortunately, one of the problems at hand was the ongoing outflow of population. Although the region is located in the north, it is a historical Russian land, and the government should do its best to make people’s living as comfortable as possible. Among other things, incomes need to be raised.
The President noted that employment has doubled in the region, which should pave the way for a gradual rise in incomes. All the rest, however, is the regional authorities’ responsibility, including education, healthcare, and culture. The President admitted that he saw good momentum in the local administration’s work, enough for people to feel the changes soon.
Vladimir Putin expressed hope that Alexander Tsybulsky would continue to work in his post and wished him every success.