VITEBSK, 30 January (BelTA) – Big Italian companies are showing interest in cooperation with Vitebsk Oblast in the development of waste treatment plants, Director of the Italian Business Association Confindustria Bielorussia Adriano Pea said as he met with the Vitebsk Oblast authorities on 30 January, BelTA has learned.
“Getting ready for this trip, we worked out potential topics for interaction and contacted several companies that are ready to cooperate with Belarusian partners in waste recycling,” said Adriano Pea. A meeting with potential investors will take place in the near future to discuss technological issues and possible options for the implementation of projects in this field, financial support, including credit resources of European banks. The generation of thermal energy from this raw material will be discussed as well, the head of the Italian association said.
According to Vitebsk Oblast First Vice Governor Oleg Matskevich, the issue is relevant for large settlements of Vitebsk Oblast. Therefore, the Vitebsk Oblast authorities are ready for a dialogue with investors. “Future belongs to such technologies. We are ready to discuss the future projects in detail,” he said.
In addition, Vitebsk Oblast can offer Italian investors several more potentially attractive projects. First of all, these are projects based on processing of local raw materials. The region has large peat reserves, and is rich in timber stocks. Thus, the idea of setting up joint ventures in these industries looks promising.
Another promising area of cooperation is the processing of meat and milk. “Now we are focused on the production of goods with a long shelf-life for the markets of China and Vietnam, and here we can find mutual interest for cooperation,” Oleg Matskevich said. The region is also home to machine-building enterprises, therefore joint projects in this field may hold good future.
The trade of Vitebsk Oblast and Italian regions has recently hovered around €50 million. Vitebsk Oblast major exports include fiberglass, linen fabrics, timber products. The region imports mostly equipment for various industries from Italy. Vitebsk sewing enterprises perform tailoring orders for Italian partners. Italian tourists come to the northern region of Belarus for hunting tours.
