Russia could cooperate with India in Civil Aviation Technology

Russia has evinced interest in promoting civil aviation technology to the Indian market and the localisation of certain production capabilities in India. The Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Denis Manturov spoke about this at a meeting with the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Civil Aviation of the Republic of India Suresh Prabhu.

Discussing cooperation in the aircraft industry, Denis Manturov confirmed Russia’s interest in promoting civil aviation technology to the Indian market, primarily taking into account the possible localisation of production — these are the MS-21, Il-114–300 aircraft and the Be-200 amphibious aircraft. Denis Manturov also spoke about the readiness of Russian manufacturers to continue supplying helicopters to India, both the already well-established Mi-172 models and the new Mi-171A2 for the Indian market and the Ansat light helicopter.

Denis Manturov also met the Minister of Defense of the Republic of India, Nirmala Sitharaman, on the margins of the Aero India — 2019 International Aviation and Space Exhibition. During the talks, the sides discussed a wide range of issues of bilateral military-technical cooperation.

“Cooperation in the military-technical sphere is of particular importance for Russia and India. Our cooperation has already shifted from simple buyer-seller relationships to a multi-faceted partnership in the design and manufacture of military products. A vivid example of joint projects is the work to conclude a contract for the construction of frigates, some of which will be built on Indian shipyards,” said Minister Denis Manturov.

The Minister presented the newest Russian MiG-35 fighter to Nirmala Sitharaman, noting its competitive advantages: unique technical characteristics and an advantageous life-cycle cost in comparison with analogues, as well as compliance with the Make in India format.

“As part of the MiG-35 program, we offer our partners extensive industrial cooperation, which has already proven itself in the implementation of the Su-30 MKI program. For new deliveries, we are ready to introduce the newest PBL standard (PBL (PerformanceBasedLogistic)), which implies the supplier’s complex responsibility for normalized indicators of aircraft serviceability, ”said the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia.

Continuing the conversation about the national concept of “Make in India”, Denis Manturov also recalled the joint work already done in this direction.

“This program covers, among other things, the organization of after-sales service for the supplied Russian armament and military equipment, including by localizing the production of components and spare parts in India. In the near future, we will sign the conceptual documents in the field of PPO and ensure the life cycle of Indian weapons and equipment supplied by Russia as part of Make in India,” noted the Minister.

On the margins of the exhibition, in the presence of the Minister, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the holding company Helicopters of Russia (part of Rostec State Corporation) and a number of Indian companies. The parties agreed to work out the organization of production in India of the aggregates and components for the Ka-226T helicopter.

Growth of Trade and New Opportunities for Joint Projects

The bilateral trade between Russia and India in 2018 increased by 17 percent over the previous year and amounted to 11 billion dollars. Russian exports to India increased by 20% to $ 7.8 billion due to to the increase in the supply of oil and oil products, coal, precious stones and metals, mechanical equipment. Imports from India grew by 11% to $ 3.2 billion due to an increase in the supply of food products and agricultural raw materials, various types of machinery, equipment and components. The further disclosure of the potential for cooperation between countries will be facilitated by the removal of barriers to trade, primarily anti-dumping special protective measures.

“An important place in cooperation between our countries is investment ties. According to expert estimates, the accumulated Russian investment in India is about $ 14 billion, about the same amount of Indian investment in Russia. The main investment projects relate to the oil industry, chemical industry, pharmaceuticals,” noted the Russian Minister.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the prospects for bilateral cooperation in a number of industries, including cooperation in the field of recycling.

“Russian enterprises are ready to offer Indian partners modern competencies, technologies and equipment, in particular, equipment for waste processing, technological solutions for accelerated composting of organic and food waste, for processing rubber products,” said the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia.

“The potential for cooperation in the field of pharmaceuticals is far from being exhausted. Indian manufacturers are actively working on the Russian market. In turn, Russian enterprises supply medical equipment to India. Today, we can offer our Indian partners innovative medicines for the treatment of cancer and diabetes. Special mention deserves such a direction as research in the field of new drug development and the creation of joint ventures for the production of pharmaceutical products,” continued the Minister.

Another topic of discussion was cooperation in the shipbuilding industry in the context of the development of India’s inland waterways. According to the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Russian design bureaus and shipbuilding enterprises are ready to take an active part in tenders for the development of national waterways on the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers.

“First of all, we are talking about designing ships for the projects “National Waterway-1” and “National Waterway-2”. Our companies — JSC “OSK”, PJSC “Nevskoye Design Bureau”, JSC “Kronstadt Technologies” and NPP “Aviation and Marine Electronics” — have a number of technical solutions to reduce the time and cost of construction,” said Denis Manturov.

During the meeting, the ministers also touched upon cooperation in the field of railway engineering.

“Russian Railways OJSC, within the framework of an agreement with the Ministry of Railways of India, is preparing a justification for the modernisation of the Nagpur-Secunderabad railway line, which will increase the speed of passenger trains to 200 km/h,” recalled the Russian Minister.