Two billion for fibreboard on pause, Changa Tau near Minger and goat farm for 3,000 head

Saby in miniature

It is no secret that Saby District of Tatarstan is considered a special place for the Tatarstan elite — the father of the head of Tatarstan Nurgali Minnikhanov worked here as director of the Saby timber industry enterprise, hence the reverent attitude to the preservation of the forest. In Saby District, this natural wealth is protected so much that foresters receive increased wages, and it is simply scary to ask about illegal logging. It is clear that the legacy of Nurgali's father predetermined the economic profile of the district — this is the cultivation of forest plantations and wood processing, agriculture and tourism. But the district itself is miniature, only 30,000 people live here.

“Despite this, the district has its own tricks,” noted Taliya Minullina. “The village of Minger (where the elite suburban complex Minger Med SPA 5* is located) has its own 66-meter-high Syuyumbike Tower, an analogue of the Kazan historical tower.”

It seems that they are not particularly chasing investments willing to preserve the privacy of the territory. According to the results of 2023, 6 billion rubles were attracted to the district economy, according to the presentation of head of Saby District Rais Minnikhanov. But they are squeezing the maximum possible out of this. The gross territorial product grew to 23.5 billion rubles (+ 7.9%). This year, the goal is to rise to 24 billion rubles. In the rating of socio-economic development of Tatarstan, Saby ranks 11th.

“While investors are slowly getting going, and Tatneft has no time for this now”

The authorities associated the sharp rise in the economy with the launch of the production of fibreboard from low-value wood species. As Rais Minnikhanov explained, the location had already been chosen, a sketch had been prepared, but geopolitics interfered with the plans.

“We are raising the issue of fibreboard to obtain a slab from low-value wood species. This is close to me as a forester,” he shared.

Before the start of the special military operation, Minnikhanov's team studied production technology in Holland.

“There is this line in Holland, more than 160 lines [work] here. We looked at how it is done — indeed, the quality is high. They were ready to design [the plant]. First, we wanted to install the equipment, and then build the building. That is, everything was ready. A conversation took place with Tatneft (Editor’s note: the investor). But because of this situation, everything did not go according to plan,” he noted. “Tatneft had other things to do, and the investors themselves are slowly getting going.

Rais Minnikhanov expects to return to the project after the introduction of the digital ruble in the country: “If we switch to digital money, there will be more investors, the calculations will become mirrored — and any production can be launched faster.” Currently, there are two factories producing fibreboard in Russia; the production facilities were built using Dutch technology before the introduction of international sanctions.”

What's the point? Low-value raw materials and waste are used, and insulation is produced — the best in fire safety and excellent in acoustics, Minnikhanov praised. In Kazan, the first facility made of fibreboard was a hall in the Russian Anti-Monopoly Service’s building on Orenburgsky Trakt highway.

Ice cream from dry goat milk, sausage from horse meat

Saby District remains the only one in the republic where forest seedlings are grown, as well as berries, bushes, flowers — a total of 12 million specimens were grown last year. They are planning to expand the area by another 1.5 million.

“Every year the demand grows, including for ornamental plants, as there is intensive improvement of populated areas,” explained Minnikhanov.

The only goat farm in the republic operates here, with 3,000 head. The annual milk yield is up to 5 tonnes. Local authorities are looking for an investor to process it into dry goat milk for baby food. It is not produced in Russia yet, although there were several initiators, but they could not pull it off. And they are also proposing to set up the production of ice cream based on goat milk for those who suffer from allergies, said Minnikhanov. The green light is also given to those who could set up horse meat processing.

“We have the largest number of horses, and anyone who wants to start processing meat is welcome!” invited Minnikhanov.

In a word, here it is a paradise for cooperatives, small agricultural enterprises.

“Do they milk cows to music here?” Taliya Minullina was interested having heard about the launch of a robotic farm for 2,400 head.

“No, but without human intervention, the quality of milk has become better. The robot does it strictly according to the instructions,” Minnikhanov shared his observations. “And no one wants to do hard work.”

“I have tried to milk a cow myself. It turned out to be very difficult, you need to have strong hands,” Taliya Minullina agreed.

Changa Tau will knock down the prices of Sviyaga Hills

The Slovak company Branko Nitra, which opened the production of turkey hatching eggs a year and a half ago will expand, said the head of the subsidiary company Branko Rus. According to him, last year 400,000 eggs were grown, which made it possible to import substitute a significant part of the imported incubator. The Slovak company has invested 3 million euros in the creation of an incubator in Saby, the enterprise opened a year and a half ago. Until now, 1.2 million hatching eggs for growing turkeys in Tatarstan have been imported to the republic.

The focus on tourism is already working well, but there is a chance to strengthen it. Saby District has decided to get involved in the race to build ski resorts. By the end of the year, Changa Tau ski resort will be launched here, said head of the district Rais Minnikhanov. It includes two trails: a simplified 250-metre trail and a more difficult 500-metre trail. The new ski resort is located near the elite Minger hotel complex. At the same time, the cost of visiting will be lower than in Sviyaga Hills, Minnikhanov assured the audience.

Net investments in the project will amount to 240 million rubles, but entertainment infrastructure will be built around it. Changa-Tau is an unofficial name for now, Rais Minnikhanov seems to have come up with it during a conversation with journalists. Whatever the case, it will become the fifth ski resort after Kukmor, Mamadysh, Vysokaya Gora and Sviyaga Hills. Maybe the prices for visiting will really fall from the sky?