INNOVATIVE POTENTIAL OF MURMANSK REGION

Innovative development of Murmansk Region economy, its mining, energy, fishing, agricultural, transportation, communication and other sectors is to a great extent based on scientific developments of academic institutes of Kola Scientific Centre of Russian Academy of Science, Polar Scientific and Research Institute of Marine Fishing Industry and Oceanography, regional university science.

Availability of powerful potential of the Kola Peninsula in fundamental and applied science as a basic component of national innovation system has always been a competitive advantage of the region. But this advantage does not bring profit by itself, the challenges of twenty first century induce to intensively search for new directions of scientific research and new forms for the transfer of their results.

Murmansk Region is gradually developing its scientific, technical and innovative potential: there are 29 organizations (10 of which are members of Kola Scientific Centre of Russian Academy of Science); two state universities (technical and pedagogical) and a wide range of branches of Moscow, St. Petersburg and Petrozavodsk engaged into research and development work. In the year of 2006 the total number of staff engaged in scientific research and development work was 2595 people, including 4 members of Russian Academy of Science, 105 doctors and 383 candidates. Overall expenditures on scientific research and development in the year of 2006 made 1119.6 million rubles – the second place in North-Western Federal Region. Expansion of scientific research solves a double task: creates conditions for the growth of scientific and technical potential and at the same time makes a base for the modernization of technical base of Murmansk Region. In conditions of limited resources, the innovative development of Murmansk Region is first of all connected with the growth of the role of scientific research aimed at solution of priority tasks of social and economical development.

One of the regional priorities is to meet the needs for the development of new technical and technological solutions for efficient and ecology-friendly use of nature resources, introduction of new and maintenance of existing industrial powers, largest on the territory of European Russia mining enterprises (joint-stock company “Apatit”, “Kovdor Mining Complex”, “Olenegorsk Mining Complex”) and enterprises of nonferrous metallurgy (joint-stock company “Kola Mining and Metallurgy Company”, branch of joint-stock company “SUAL”, “Kandalaksha Aluminium Plant – SUAL”).

The anticipated growth of energy-consuming, reasoned by prospects of the development of arctic fields of hydrocarbon raw materials and its processing on the territory of the region requires scientific understanding.

The same applies to the appearance of new consumers of electric power, such as an aluminum plant of “SUAL” company, which is now being designed. Scientific and technical tasks will be connected to the search of new energy resources, development of the ways to improve the existing power supply system. The urge to solve the problems of energy saving in housing and communal services will increase.

Still relevant for science and technology is the problem of safe treatment of nuclear wastes and used atomic fuel at Kolskaya Atomic Power Station, atomic vessels of the Northern Fleet and Murmansk Shipping Company, development of scientific and methodical base for the development of scientific base for radoigeology of underground objects for long-term storage and entombment of nuclear materials in geological formation of the region.

Acute is the problem of the development of fishery and fish processing industries. Polar Scientific and Research Institute of Marine Fishing Industry and Oceanography, Murmansk Marine Biological Institute of Kola Scientific Centre of Russian Academy of Science and Murmansk State Technical University have the task to scientifically substantiate the anticipation and efficient use of biological resources of the Arctic and the Northern Atlantic. Together with this the limitation of the raw materials base induces to search of new ways for the development of fish industry, including the creation of aquaculture industries and the technology of use of non-traditional kinds of hydrobionts.

Among the priority long-term strategic aims of innovative policy of Murmansk Region is the development of oil-and-gas sector, including production, transporting and processing of hydrocarbon raw material. Construction of oil pipelines in its turn can contribute to accelerated development of deposits of rare and other metals in central and eastern parts of the Kola Peninsula. The task of the science is to theoretically ground the measures to prevent possible conflicts in the area where oil pipelines cross the regions in which traditional nature management is predominating or there are specially preserved nature reserves.

In the category of forcing-through, federally important is the development of Kola Scientific Centre in the development of basic package of technologies and forming of national backlog of strategic materials based on rare-metal resources of the Kola Peninsula. Organization of production of monocrystals, ceramics and alloys with special properties, high pure chemical compounds for acoustical and optical electronics, nanotechnologies in the Murmansk Region will allow supporting of defense and other sectors with strategic materials. For the Murmansk Region it is as well the recreation and the development of the hail-growing for Lovozero district mining enterprise and further integration of regional industrial and scientific potential with the enterprises that determine innovative development of the country.

Growing is the relevance of scientific research, economical and social processes of regional development in the conditions of globalization. Studying the dynamics of migration processes and health of the population, forming and distribution of labor resources, activity of indigenous people living beyond the North circle should finish with the development of a conception that would allow formulating new principles for building of social politics and mechanisms for its implementation. The process of state managerial decision-making goes to new level of quality.

The sphere of science in intensively intruded by politics and market economy, there is a transfer made from random forming of research themes and development by scientific organizations themselves to programme-targeted planning based on the needs of the region. When determining the most important research strategies there is a growth of the role of potential scientific production.

All these main strategies of regional scientific, technical and innovative policy are formulated in the strategy for the development of science, technology and innovation activity in Murmansk Region up to the year of 2015. The strategy includes also the measures for forming and development of organizational, legal, and financial mechanisms for the management of the development in this sphere.

One of the factors of sustainable development of scientific and technical potential of the Murmansk region is the reproduction of scientific and engineering staff in accordance with the priorities and needs of scientific and technical sphere. Training of staff for scientific, technical and innovation sphere should be based on higher education, specialized training centers in innovation management. A comprehensive solution for the problem of staff training in innovation management demands the consolidation of efforts of scientific, production and educational institutions. In order to identify gifted youth and prepare them to creative work one should revive the practice of creation of scientific societies, scientific competitions, lecturing by leading scientists of the Murmansk Region.

The infrastructure for commercializing of the results of scientific, research, experimental and construction works is being formed at Kola Scientific Centre of the Russian Academy of Science, Murmansk State Technical University, Murmansk Centre of Scientific and Technical Information as well as other organizations, which have scientific, technical, staff, material and technical potential available. This work includes the following:

- System of production and technological support for scientific and technical activities. The elements of the system should be as follows: technical park in the city of Apatity, plant laboratories, academic and higher education staff centers for shared used of expensive equipment;

- System of intellectual property protection, examination of scientific, technical, innovation programmes and projects. Patent and license works, control for the quality of scientific and technical services and innovation products, meteorological services, standards, certification of organizations which produce production for science, should meet the contemporary requirements;

- System of promotion of scientific and technical developments and production for science to the market. This system, which is now being developed at Murmansk Centre of Scientific and Technical Information and Kola Centre of Technology Transfer is intended to provide the occupation and gradual expansion of a certain segment (“niche”) for new developments and production with simultaneous preservation and efficient protection of all rights and benefits for the owners of these developments and producers connected to it.

For the funding of applied science projects in Murmansk Region the cooperation with the Federal Agency for Science and Innovations, Fund of Cooperation to the Development of Small-Scale Enterprises in Scientific and Technical Sphere, Fund for Technological Development, interregional and field off-budget funds for scientific, research, experimental and construction works. The most important condition for the activation of innovation activity is the attraction of funds from non-state sources in order to commercialize the technologies.

The main aim of regional innovation policy is to increase the competitive ability of the economics at the expense of the development of scientific potential and its efficient use in basic branches and systems of life support of Murmansk region.

In order to achieve the set aim the Murmansk Region will have to solve the following tasks in three years’ time:

- Concentrate the available resources on priority strategies of science, technology and technical development, connected to the implementation of the strategy of economical development of the Murmansk Region;

- Form a new legislation field, providing optimal conditions for scientific, technical and innovative activities;

- Create organizational conditions for the integration of scientific, educational and technological potential of the Murmansk Region;

- Provide for extended reproduction of staff potential for scientific, educational and technological potential of the Murmansk Region;

- Provide for forming of regional information and innovation infrastructure, adequate to new needs of postindustrial society;

- Create not less than 20 small-scale innovation enterprises mainly based on scientific developments of the institutes of Kola Scientific Centre of the Russian Academy of Science, Polar Scientific and Research Institute of Marine Fishing Industry and Oceanography, Murmansk State technical University and other scientific and research regional organizations. 

THE "INDUSTRIAL NORTH" #2