Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Area
The Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area (YNAA) is one of the largest Russian regions. It is part of the Urals Federal District. The YNAA is located in the Arctic zone of the Western Siberian Plain in the centre of Russia's Extreme North. The YNAA covers 769,000 square kilometres. Over half of the area lies beyond the Arctic circle. Tundra and forest tundra cover three-fifths of the area.
The YNAA has a population of 536,000 people, including representatives of 112 ethnic groups. Over 37,000 people belong to small indigenous northern ethnic groups. Of these, over 15,000 are nomads.
Salekhard, with a population of about 45,000, is the YNAA administrative centre founded by Russian Cossacks in 1595. This is a unique town located on the Arctic circle. Other large towns are Novy Urengoi, Noyabrsk and Nadym.
The YNAA is one of the five Russian regions with the highest investment rating indicator. The YNAA holds one of the first places among Russian regions in terms of the gross regional product (GRP). The YNAA's primary economic activities are industry, construction, commerce, transport, communications, and agriculture.
The YNAA accounts for 85% of Russia's natural gas production and 20% of the world's gas production. Its total gas resources amount to 125 trillion cubic metres, and its total oil and condensate resources amount to 23 billion tonnes. The YNAA has 235 hydrocarbon fields, including 63 in industrial development, 22 fields that are ready for operation, and 150 fields where gas exploration work is being conducted. The YNAA has produced over 15 trillion cubic metres of gas during active field exploitation.
The density of hard-surfaced roads is 1.4 kilometres per 1,000 square kilometres. Road construction has intensified over the last three years. One of the major transport projects is the construction of the Nadym-Salekhard Motorway. The project has been included in the list of priority investment projects in the Urals Federal District.
Transportation and haulage rely on aviation in those YNAA districts that do not enjoy year-round motorway service. The outdated aircraft are gradually replaced as the regional Yamal airline is modernised. The Airports Development area programme up to 2020 is being implemented in the YNAA. The reconstruction and the modernisation activities of the Krasnoselkup Airport have also started. The Nadym, Novy Urengoi, and Salekhard airports will also be reconstructed and modernised in the future.
The local multiethnic traditions form the cultural foundation of the YNAA. The area has 228 institutions of culture and art. One of the best-known YNAA museums is the Shemanovsky Museum and Exhibition Complex where a mummified body of the world-famous Lyuba baby mammoth is kept.
The local arts and crafts are interesting. Reindeer herder districts have ivory and wood-carving, artistic fur and leather processing and cloth embroidery products. In the forest tundra, birch bark is widely used in arts and crafts. Southern districts have mostly bead-weaving, birch bark artistic processing, and wood-carving products.
