September 26, 2014. An agreement on trade, economic, scientific, technological, and cultural cooperation will be signed by Sverdlovsk Region and the federal state of Styria, Austria, the Governor of Sverdlovsk Region’s Information Department reports.

‘The agreement, that is currently being worked on by both parties, will lay a solid foundation for the cooperation between Sverdlovsk Region and one of Austria’s most economically developed federal states and will become a basis for long-term investment. Choosing Styria as a business partner was no coincidence: this Austrian state has an economic structure that is similar to that of Sverdlovsk Region, so the manufacturers of equipment for metallurgical enterprises and companies in the energy sector can build mutually beneficial ties in Sverdlovsk Region. What is more, Styria has vast experience of sped-up industrial upgrades under an economic strain,’ the department says.

According to Governor of Sverdlovsk Region Evgeniy Kuivashev, the two parties have potential in developing their ties in hi tech sector, industrial and technological parks, electro-technical equipment, and timber processing industry. Styria’s experience will also come in handy for the development of Sverdlovsk Region’s industrial clusters. The Governor suggested that the federal land’s Prime Minister Franz Voves gave the Russian party every opportunity for cooperating in the fields of higher education and science.

‘We are quite interested in cooperating on a local level, and our federal legislation contains all the provisions on how this cooperation could proceed. We are extremely interested in your federal constituency,’ Franz Voves said.