Tver Region
The Tver Region is located in the centre of European Russia. The region covers 81,400 square kilometres, and has a population of 1.35 million people including an urban population of about one million people.
The region's administrative centre is Tver. Other major cities include Rzhev, Vyshy Volochok, Kimry, Torzhok, Konakovo and Udomlya. The region has 405 municipalities including 41 cities and districts as well as two closed administrative territories (ZATO or closed cities).
The region boasts vast water resources. The Volga and Western Dvina originate here. The region has a multitude of lakes as well as the Ivankovskoye Reservoir – the main source of drinking water for Moscow. The region is crossed by Moscow-St Petersburg railway and motorway, as well as by the Moscow-Riga motorway.
Forests cover 54.2% or 4,421,400 hectares of the region's total area. The region has large peat reserves which account for more than 50% (2.18 billion tonnes) of total peat reserves in central Russia. Other minerals include sand and gravel, mortar sands, silicate sands, fusible and coal clays, limestone of various types, sapropel, soft subsurface waters and brown coal. The region boasts mineral springs used for table water, medicinal water and for hydrotherapy at local resorts.
The main industries include machine building, printing, timber processing, chemical and food production. In nine months of 2011, local industries produced goods worth of 144.9 billion roubles with an industrial production index of 111.6% (Russian average index is 105.2%).
The region's agriculture focuses on cattle breeding. Flax is also grown. Some 38% of the total Central Federal District or 11% of total Russian fibre flax is grown in the region. In nine months of 2011, total agricultural production of all types was 121.4% of last year (in comparable prices).
There are about 50,000 small and midsize enterprises and individual entrepreneurs in the region.
In the first nine months of 2011, the investment in the regional economy totalled 51.8 billion roubles. Currently more than 70 large investment projects with a total investment of about 136 billion roubles are being implemented. These will create about 20,000 jobs. Investors include well-known transnational and Russian companies Shell, Hitachi, Jabil, STOD, SKF, Alstom, ProfEsteit (ProfEstate), METRO Cash & Carry, Paulig, X5 Retail Group, OZON.ru, Pareto-Print (Atticus Publishing Group), OTTO GROUP, Leroy Merlin, GLOBUS, Lenta, Paroc, Agroholding EcoRos, etc.
