Problems and Prospects for the Development of the Chemical Industry in Irkutsk Oblast under Modern Conditions

This article examines current issues related to the development of the chemical industry in Irkutsk oblast as an integral part of the chemical complex of the Russian Federation. It is found that the chemical industry entered a consolidation stage in the 2000s. New economic ties were formed, new product markets were entered, and a transition to a qualitatively new technical and technological level was achieved. Interregional chemical clusters were formed. All this has ensured the competitiveness of the region’s chemical complex in the Russian market and abroad. It has been established that the main problems of the region’s chemical complex are an insufficient supply of domestic raw materials, high prices for raw materials and transportation costs, a high level of depreciation of production facilities, the insufficient capacity of the domestic market, etc. It is concluded that the chemical industry in Irkutsk oblast, although not playing a system-forming role in the region’s economy, occupies a significant share of industrial production and has a significant impact on the development of other industries. It is shown that chemical complex enterprises are city-forming for some areas of the region and ensure social stability. It has been revealed that the prospects for developing the deep processing of chemical products are constrained by low profitability and a limited product market. The pharmaceutical industry is an exception, where prospects are linked to the production of medicines based on regional scientific developments. It has been determined that there are opportunities in Irkutsk oblast to create innovative low-tonnage chemical production facilities at the former site of OOO Usolyekhimprom with the establishment of a Federal Chemistry Center. The prospects for the development of the industry are also linked to the implementation of new projects in the field of gas chemistry in the north of the region, the production of potash fertilizers, and the development of import substitution in the production of high value-added polymer-based products. It is also shown that the need to take into account the ESG agenda will play an increasingly important role in the development of chemical production. The feasibility of developing comprehensive programs for the development of the chemical complex at both federal and regional levels is substantiated.