China, Russia explore new investment opportunities in online seminar

A poster of the online seminar titled "Sakhalin — New Opportunities for China-Russia Cooperation: Investment Environment and Project Matching" held on Aug. 20, 2025. [Photo provided to China.org.cn]

An online seminar titled "Sakhalin — New Opportunities for China-Russia Cooperation: Investment Environment and Project Matching" was held on Aug. 20, bringing together Russian and Chinese government officials and business representatives to discuss policies, projects and partnerships.

The event aimed to brief Chinese enterprises and investors on the tax incentives and legal framework of Russia's Sakhalin, promote key investment projects, and provide a direct platform for cross-border business exchanges.

Teng Hexian, vice president of the China Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, highlighted the strong momentum of bilateral trade ties. "China-Russia economic and trade cooperation has been advancing steadily and producing remarkable results," Teng said. "This online meeting enables entrepreneurs from both countries to transcend geographical distance and build a bridge of pragmatic cooperation."

Two months earlier, Teng led a Chinese business delegation to Sakhalin. "Sakhalin has vast territory, with extensive forests and farmland," he noted. "China has mature experience in R&D, smart manufacturing, and cross-border supply chain integration. Together, we can combine technology resources and markets to achieve complementary growth."

Anton Zaitsev, deputy head of the Sakhalin regional government, emphasized the region's geographical advantage. "We are located close to Asia-Pacific countries, especially China, making cooperation highly suitable," he said.

He also pointed to Sakhalin's abundant natural resources, including oil, natural gas, coal and minerals. According to Zaitsev, the Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 projects produce 12.5 million metric tons of oil and 29 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually.

Logistics was highlighted as another strength. "Sakhalin has airports, Arctic transport corridors and ports capable of shipping to major global destinations," Zaitsev said. He also introduced aquaculture resources such as sea urchins, sea cucumbers and scallops, with an annual output of 50,000 metric tons and export revenue of $350 million.

The potential for tourism was also mentioned, with Sakhalin's hot springs, islands and volcanoes presented during the seminar. "We hope Chinese entrepreneurs can participate in our hotel development here," Zaitsev added.

Vasily Grudev, minister of investment policy of the Sakhalin region, outlined preferential policies for investors, including permission to hire 100% foreign labor, duty-free import of equipment and materials, and flexible recruitment options for creative industries such as IT and design.

During the Q&A session, Chinese enterprises from Fujian and Shandong provinces raised questions about cooperation opportunities in energy, bio-protein and tourism. This was followed by presentations from Chinese side, including the Foreign Affairs and Commerce Bureau of Qinhuangdao, Hebei province, which introduced its industrial, agricultural and tourism resources and mentioned the potential for a direct flight route to Sakhalin, as well as Shanghai Zhigao Investment Consulting Co. Ltd., which showcased its medical device products.