SEZ «Kulibin» rose to 4th place in the National Ranking of Russian SEZs’ Investment Attractiveness

The Nizhny Novgorod Special Economic Zone (SEZ) «Kulibin» has taken 4th place in the IX National Ranking of Russian SEZs’ Investment Attractiveness, climbing one position over the past year. The ranking was prepared by the Association of Clusters, Technoparks, and SEZs of Russia with the support of the Russian Ministry of Economic Development.

«The Nizhny Novgorod Region places significant emphasis on working with investors, including the development of preferential territories. This is also confirmed by the Agency for Strategic Initiatives’ (ASI) investment climate ranking, where we first climbed 68 positions and have now maintained second place for two consecutive years. One of our flagship projects — SEZ „Kulibin“ — is attracting more and more investors. Demand is so high that, over the five years of the site’s existence, we have already decided on its second expansion: in November, the Russian Government approved the inclusion of a territory in the city of Bor, covering over 117 hectares. Thus, since 2020, the SEZ area has grown by more than 11 times», — said Gleb Nikitin, Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region.

In 2025, experts evaluated 48 special economic zones using 41 indicators grouped into seven functional blocks, including regional investment attractiveness, favorable conditions for business activities, infrastructure availability, land resources and capital construction facilities, information transparency, global economic challenges, management company’s competencies, etc.

«This ranking serves as an important incentive for the development of all types of SEZs, helping to attract investment and create new high‑tech production facilities. We have significantly expanded the criteria system, placing greater emphasis on the competencies of management companies, their ability to respond to global challenges, and the availability of innovative and social infrastructure», — noted Mikhail Labudin, Director of the Association of Clusters, Technoparks, and SEZs of Russia.

Additionally, the Nizhny Novgorod preferential territory was recognized in the special category «Comfortable Ecosystem».

«The Expert Council of the special economic zone has approved projects with a total investment volume exceeding 167 billion rubles. Currently, the SEZ portfolio includes projects across a wide range of sectors — from chemicals to consumer goods. Several enterprises are already operating on the site, producing critical products for multiple industries, and several more production facilities are scheduled for commissioning in the near future», — said Andrey Sanosyan, Deputy Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region.

The managing company of the SEZ «Kulibin» is JSC «Nizhny Novgorod Region Development Corporation».

«The ecosystem being created within the SEZ „Kulibin“ aims to provide comfortable conditions not only for production activities but also for research and development. For instance, the creation of „Technopark H₂O“ is nearing completion, and the construction of all necessary engineering infrastructure for investment projects is underway on the state‑owned site. The Development Corporation will continue working to enhance the site’s investment attractiveness», — noted Igor Ishchenko, Director General of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Development Corporation.