Siberia is a storehouse of Russia's natural resources. The main fuel, energy and forest resources of the country are concentrated here. Even according to preliminary estimates, the total value of Siberian wealth is expressed in hundreds of trillions of rubles.
Inexhaustible bowels
It is generally accepted that Russia is firmly "sitting" on the oil and gas needle. This is not how we suck: our country "sits" on everything that can only be contained in the bowels of the earth. About 20 thousand Russian deposits hide innumerable wealth. The main part of minerals - about 71% - is energy and fuel resources (coal, oil, gas). 15% - nonmetallic raw materials (minerals and rocks), 13% - various metals, 1% falls on the extraction of diamonds and precious metals. According to experts, in the bowels of the "eighth part of the Earth" wealth worth $ 30 trillion is hidden. This is more than 130 annual state budgets.
A significant part of Russian wealth is hidden in the Siberian subsoil. For example, the fuel and energy reserves of Siberia are estimated at 66% of the all-Russian, mineral reserves are more modest - 16%. But if we include other important resources of Western and Eastern Siberia - hydropower resources - 43%, forest resources - 49%, and land resources - 26%, then the total contribution of Siberia to the country's wealth will exceed 40%.
However, the ratio may change, since only approximately the reserves of minerals in Eastern Siberia, which are much less developed than Western Siberia, have been calculated. And mastering this gigantic variety and amount of wealth is not so easy.
Nature has reliably protected oil and gas deposits of the Siberian region from humans with powerful swamps and permafrost soils. It is extremely difficult to conduct industrial activities in such conditions. In winter, severe frosts, high humidity and strong winds interfere with a person. And in the summer it is overwhelmed by numerous insects - midges, mosquitoes and gnats.
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Siberian curse
In the 2000s, the book "The Siberian Curse" was published in the USA. Its authors raised the question: how economically justified is the permanent residence of the population in the Trans-Ural macroregion? After all, this requires huge costs, so isn't it easier to transfer the development of Siberia to a rotational method?
According to the authors, it is necessary to equip production and technological processes in Siberia in such a way that people stay here temporarily, and the territory itself is a technological platform. However, Russia does not agree with this.
Every year in our country the question is raised of how to use the wealth of Siberia as efficiently as possible, how to attract investors, how to ensure that Siberian raw materials are deeply processed here, how to build new production facilities for this?
Domestic economists unanimously declare that, first of all, it is necessary to update the geological map of Siberia, and for this it is necessary to change the technology of the geological exploration process. “It is necessary to do this, because we can receive data with more potential than we have today,” experts say.
Coal
Unlike 20 years ago, today coal is in the position of a “poor relative”. It is much more difficult to extract and transport than oil and gas, and when burned, it produces a huge amount of soot and ash that pollutes the atmosphere. China is experiencing all the charm of using coal now. Thanks to coal-fired power plants, such dense smog hangs over Beijing for months that residents cannot distinguish a cloudy day from a sunny one.
However, experts are confident that after the depletion of oil and gas reserves, coal can regain lost ground. In Russia, its proven reserves are estimated at 182 billion tons - almost 30% of the world volume. According to rough forecasts, our coal reserves should last at least 400 years.
The largest coal deposits are found in Eastern Siberia. For example, in the Tunguska deposit there are 2.299 billion tons of coal, in the Leninsky - 1.647 billion tons. However, due to the constant low temperature and remoteness from the explored areas, the development of these deposits requires huge material costs.
Oil
According to the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), if the current annual production of all proven oil reserves on Earth is maintained, it will last for 20-25 years. Interestingly, Russian companies have an advantage over Western ones. The fund of their proven reserves is somewhat lower. Considering this factor, Russian oilmen are hastily looking for ways to extract the residual reserves of old fields and are trying to “stake out” new territories for themselves. Domestic oil giants are looking at the continental shelf and Eastern Siberia.
However, according to experts, one should competently dispose of the wealth that has already been explored. Scientists are sure to work in the region for a very long time. According to the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources Sergei Donskoy, with the current volume of oil production, the complete depletion of deposits in the depths of Russia can be expected no earlier than 2044.
Today, more than 55% of all-Russian oil is produced in Yugra (West Siberian economic region). This region is the undisputed leader. In the structure of global production, its share exceeds 7.5%. With the rational use of the subsoil, the resource base of Yugra will make it possible to maintain the achieved volumes of production until 2030.
According to geologists, there is no alternative to Western Siberia in terms of oil production. They are more optimistic in their forecasts: “If you ask a common question, how long will West Siberian oil last, the answer will be simple: we will have enough for the entire 21st century”.
Net income from the oil industry in Russia is about 1.2 trillion. rubles per year, and in the form of tax deductions to the state budget, the amount reaches 7.4 trillion. The amount of oil reserves in Russia is estimated at about 14 billion tons, which is about 5.4 trillion. dollars.
Gas
The total volume of gas in Russia, according to OPEC, is 49.541 trillion. cubic meters is 24.6% of the total world reserves. The main region for gas production is the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District, which belongs to the Western Siberian economic zone. This entity accounts for 90% of Russian natural gas.
Our country annually produces about 670 billion cubic meters of blue fuel. More than 200 billion cubic meters of them are exported. The main consumers and buyers of our natural gas are European countries, primarily Turkey, Italy and Germany. At the current level, Russia's gas production will be sufficient for more than 70 years.
It should be noted that the geological knowledge of our country is at a very low level, therefore, the reserves of natural gas in such hard-to-reach areas as the Far East, the Arctic and Eastern Siberia are still unknown.
The largest gas fields in Russia are concentrated in Eastern Siberia - Chayandinskoye (Yakutia) with a fuel reserve of 1.2 trillion. cubic meters, its cost is estimated at $ 425 billion, and Kovykta (Irkutsk region) - 1.5 trillion. cubic meters worth $ 525 billion.
Iron ore
Metals occupy the second place in Russian exports. In terms of proven reserves of iron ore, the Russian Federation ranks first in the world - 264 billion tons (18% of global reserves). In 2014, metallurgists earned $ 400 million in foreign markets. The main deposits of this ore are located in Siberia.
The Bakcharskoye iron ore deposit located in the Tomsk region is considered especially rich. The reserves of iron ore here are estimated at 28.7 billion tons. At the same time, Tomsk ores contain up to 57% iron, as well as impurities of other chemical elements - phosphorus, vanadium, palladium, gold and platinum. The iron content in the beneficiated ore reaches 95-97%.
Titanium
It is impossible to imagine aircraft construction without "flying" titanium. A variety of aircraft parts, from flaps and brackets to engine casings and landing gear, are made from lightweight and durable titanium alloy. It has been established that titanium can withstand ultra-low temperatures and cosmic radiation, it is indispensable in the manufacture of rockets, and its ability to “grow together” with the bones of the human body makes it a unique material for implants and prostheses.
In addition to Transbaikalia and the Urals, there are large reserves of titanium ore in Siberia. The cost of titanium on the world market is $ 9 per kg. Among the buyers there are 48 countries, as well as leading aircraft and machine building companies of the planet: the American Boeing, the Brazilian Embraer, the British Rolls-Royceplc, the European defense concern EADS.
Rare earth metals
Siberian subsoil is also rich in rare earth metals. This group includes 17 unique elements, without which modern technologies are inconceivable. The price on the world market for these metals is off scale. So, for a kilogram of europium oxide you have to pay $ 128, for a kilogram of dysprosium - $ 270. The most expensive are terbium oxide - $ 385 and, in fact, terbium itself - $ 560.
Russia has about 18% of the world's reserves of rare earth metals, but controls only 1.3% of this market. The Ministry of Industry and Trade pins great hopes on the development of the Tomtor deposit in northern Siberia: it, according to experts, has a unique concentration of rare earth elements.
Copper
The largest deposits of Russian copper are located in the southern part of the Siberian Federal District, mainly in the Transbaikalia. So, in the Udokan copper deposit, the reserves of this metal are estimated at 15.1 million tons or $ 69.9 billion.
Precious metals
According to experts, the territory of Eastern Siberia has great unique economic and resource opportunities for the extraction of precious metals. For example, in the Taimyr area (the place where Norilsk Nickel works), the territory is not developed by 75%.
In terms of gold production, we are in fifth place, namely 6-7% of world production. The richest deposit is Sukhoi Log (Irkutsk region), the average gold grade here is 2.8 g per ton of ore, and gold reserves are estimated at 1,920 thousand tons or $ 77.5 billion.
Forest
51% of Siberia's area is covered with forests - about 2 million 607 thousand square meters. km. The total timber reserves in the regions of the Siberian Federal District are estimated at 30–36 billion cubic meters, operational - at 10–15 billion cubic meters. At the same time, experts estimate the annual volume of timber growth in Siberia at about 300-400 million cubic meters. In monetary terms, the forest wealth of Siberia is almost $ 2 trillion.
How are such huge stocks of wood used? Unfortunately ineffective. Suffice it to say that the volume of logging in Siberia per hectare of forested area is 5-6 times less than in Canada, and 20 times less than in Finland.
According to economists, if at least half of the efficiency of forest use in countries such as Canada or Finland is achieved, then Siberia would be able to live comfortably and develop only through the exploitation of the richest renewable forest resources.
We must hurry
While the Russian economy is rocking, Chinese investors are ready to spend about $ 15 billion on the development of Siberia and the Far East. And this, according to some political analysts, is the beginning of a real economic expansion. However, officials are reassuring: China's expansion should not be feared.
“We must not be afraid of Chinese investments, we must fight for them,” said Kirill Dmitriev, general director of the Russian Direct Investment Fund. "The world is in a sluggish crisis, there is little trust in the market, and they have money."
Business analyst Dmitry Surov is sure that Chinese investors are interested, first of all, in raw materials projects. An additional incentive is the benefits that investors in Siberian and Far Eastern projects will receive. At the same time, the corporation for the development of Siberia and the Far East will be exempted from federal income taxes for 10 years, the analyst said.
According to experts, the joint development of Siberia is beneficial for both China and Russia. And protection from Chinese expansion is a matter of proper government regulation. However, time will tell.