Opinions & Interviews

Potanin: Joint plans with Belarus are becoming concrete projects

MINSK, 8 September (BelTA) - Joint plans in cooperation with Belarus are already being turned into concrete projects, Vladimir Potanin, head of Russia’s Interros and Nornickel, said as he met with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko in Minsk on 8 September, BelTA has learned.

Vladimir Potanin noted that he had spent a long time thinking before his visit to Belarus about which areas might be of mutual interest for cooperation. “Believe me, we have seriously considered all the possibilities. And I am very pleased that during this trip we are already managing to turn joint plans into concrete projects,” he said.

The head of the companies mentioned the cooperation agreement signed the previous day between Nornickel and BelAZ, aimed at combining efforts to develop scientific and technological potential for creating a new generation of mining equipment, introducing unmanned technologies for mining, and other innovations. The agreement provides for the establishment of a joint venture to implement these plans, as well as a full-profile repair base to develop the production, repair, and maintenance of underground mining equipment.

“This not only allows us to address the issue of equipping our enterprise with mining machinery. Joint cooperation will enable us to create a new line of equipment that, according to our calculations and hopes, will successfully compete with the best models. Because we are adding elements related to unmanned projects, new types of engines - more economical and safer. And we have tried to combine our cooperation in traditional mining equipment and other areas with developments in artificial intelligence and big data,” Vladimir Potanin said.

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