Photo: EPA
The Samsung concern, which is South Korea’s largest electronics producer, is holding talks with the Skolkovo administration about the opening of its scientific-research and design and experimental centre at the Skolkovo Innovation Centre (Innograd). It is not surprising at all since the South Korean company is actively working on the Russian market.
It has been successfully hiring graduates of the Russian institutes for 15 years now.
Samsung has a good chance to become the first Asian company to open a scientific-research and design and experimental centre in Skolkovo. The two sides plan to reach agreement this autumn, the Managing Director of the Skolkovo Foundation Key Partner Relations Department, Roman Romanovsky, said in an interview with the Voice of Russia.
"We plan to give shelter to 20 corporate centres: the decisions on that score have already been taken. However, there no Asian companies among them. The traditional exporters of such centres in Asia are South Korea and Japan. Samsung is one of the largest world players. It has already opened a big research centre in Moscow. On our offer list for Skolkovo is the opening of a scientific centre in Skolkovo that exists in Moscow now. Presently we are discussing several joint projects, including the one in the field of education. I hope that a relevant decision will be taken this autumn."
Romanovsky says that the Skolkovo Innovation Centre plans to create an eco-system, in which scientific-research and design and experimental centres will play a very important role. Late in May this year the American Microsoft Corporation, which unveiled its plans as early as 2010, signed an agreement with the Skolkovo administration providing for the opening of a scientific-research centre there. By 2015 it plans to hire 100 Russian IT specialists. It will be beneficial for Russia because it hampers brain drain. Specialists who planned to work abroad after graduation, possibly, will set up their own centres in Russia, an expert with the Finam Global Investment Fund, Leonid Delitsyn, says.
"It is not for the first time that the Samsung electronics giant is hiring graduates of Russian institutes and Russian post-graduate students, and is cooperating with Russian scientists. The qualification of the Russian personnel makes it possible to resolve the tasks Samsung is faced with. I think that this is beneficial for both sides. Samsung will be able to hire highly qualified Russian personnel at lower wages than in other countries which will be able to resolve the tasks put before them by the time fixed. And as regards Russian specialists, they will be able to do interesting work not leaving Russia."
The Skolkovo Foundation Development Centre for the Development and Commercialization of New Technologies was set up on the initiative of the former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev in September of 2010. Its main objective is to create a favourable atmosphere for scientific developments in 5 priority directions, including the energy sector, energy efficiency, space biomedicine, and nuclear and computer technologies.
For the time being, about 50 young companies are listed as Skolkovo residents, and all of them have tax privileges. The Skolkovo fund has already given grants to nearly 100 companies.
Source: Voice of Russia