Published: 25 September, 2008, 06:20
Edited: 25 September, 2008, 06:20
Russia's ‘northern capital’ St. Petersburg and the region around are rich in history but also have prospects of steady economic development, with the shipbuilding industry at its core. And a thousand years ago, it was ships that first brought people and p
Once windy and desolate place, it became a melting pot, where Vikings, Karelians and Slavs exchanged furs and honey. A lot of the traders had different religions and when they would come into a port, they would wear the right one to be received better and to avoid taxes.
The port of Vyborg grew out of an imposing sea fortress. Always a border outpost, it was besieged tens of times as it changed hands between Russians, Swedes and Finns. All the dramatic, important historical and social events of the past seven centuries have flowed through this city.
The city's architecture reflects its various owners. Almost every aspect of this place is soaked with seafaring history, but it is not just about the heritage.
The Vyborg shipyard is one of the biggest in Russia. Even as many industries struggled to adapt to the new market economy of the 1990s, it kept working.
Its equipment may now look outdated, and a third of its workers are approaching retirement age but an order for two Gazprom drilling platforms worth more than $US 2 billion allows to think of a brighter future. Also, a new super-modern wharf will soon be built.
The company director Valery Levchenko says that despite lags in technology and production methods, Russia's shipbuilding is competitive.
“I don't think we are worse than our Western colleagues. If we were worse than them, why would we get all these orders? We have been doing this for a long time,” he said.
Like Vyborg before it, Ust Luga is a port that will spawn a town. Over the next seven years, $US 20 billion will be poured into the project. In a country where infrastructure has struggled to keep up with economic demands, it is a breakthrough.
With every other building a valuable artifact, St. Petersburg may seem like a city that belongs to history. But with tens of ambitious projects planned, it is at the centre of a major economic development programme, credit crunch or not.