The Nizhny Novgorod Association of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (NAIE) is a regional public organization uniting the heads of large industrial enterprises and entrepreneurs of the Nizhny Novgorod Region. As of 2024, the organization marked its 35th anniversary, being recognized by participants in the jubilee events as one of the oldest associations of its kind in modern Russia.[1]

History and Activities

The Association was founded in the late 1980s amid the onset of market reforms. The founding conference of NAIE was held in the summer of 1989 in the building of Gorkyglавснаб on Gorky Square — a building that subsequently housed a number of ministries of the regional government; the principal report on the need to establish an industrialists' association was delivered by Yuri Pavlovich Startsev, who served as Director General of the Arzamas Instrument-Making Plant, and the official registration of the association took place on October 9, 1989. The predecessor of NAIE was the Directors' Council of the City of Gorky, created under the city party committee as an expert club for enterprise directors, whose chairman was Vladimir Luzyanin; according to Luzyanin, it was precisely this council that served as the organizational foundation for establishing an association at the regional level — already under the auspices of the regional party committee.

The first permanent address of NAIE was a building below the Kremlin on the Nizhne-Volzhskaya Embankment: several rooms there were provided by the association's first director, Vasily Pavlovich Kudryavtsev, who headed an organization called Tsvetmet, connected to Glavsnab.[2][2][2] In its early years, from late 1989, NAIE functioned primarily as a directors' club and only by the end of 1993 had it developed into a cohesive organization with clearly defined objectives.

During Boris Nemtsov's governorship in the early 1990s, the Nizhny Novgorod regional authorities effectively did not engage with industrial matters: the government had not a single official responsible for this area, and as a counterweight to NAIE, Nemtsov established his own Council of Entrepreneurs under the Governor, headed by Igor Aronov, who held the status of gubernatorial adviser and had an office in the regional administration.[3][4] According to one of its participants, Stanislav Spitsyn, the organization was created under the particular economic conditions of the transition period.[1] Valery Tsybanev, who served as Director General of the association, described NAIE's role in the 1990s as that of preserving Nizhny Novgorod's industry.[1] The company Promis joined NAIE 25 years ago, that is, approximately in the late 1990s.[1]

NAIE was the first regional branch of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RUIE). In the early phase of NAIE's existence, the most active participants in its meetings were the heads of Nizhny Novgorod's largest enterprises: Vladimir Mikhaylovich Pomolov (Director General of the Sokol aircraft manufacturing plant), Nikolai Sergeyevich Zharkov (Director General of the Krasnoye Sormovo Plant), and Boris Pavlovich Vidyayev (Director General of GAZ JSC); in those years the association comprised primarily large defense enterprises that by 1992 had lost their state contracts.[2] In January 1994, on the eve of elections to the regional and city legislative bodies, the NAIE council set itself the task of supporting candidates whose programs included backing for the Region's industrial enterprises.

In April 1994, under pressure from Nizhny Novgorod industrialists, a committee for industry and investment policy was established within the regional government structure, with which NAIE began to collaborate; Nizhny Novgorod residents were among the first in the country to form a dedicated committee within the regional administration, and in the summer of 1995 a Department of Industry was established on the basis of that committee, headed by Dmitry Konstantinovich Lavrov.

In the 1997 gubernatorial election, NAPP backed candidate Ivan Sklyarov in the second round, putting forward a condition: if he won, he would appoint as first deputy governor overseeing industry one of the incumbent directors of Nizhny Novgorod enterprises. Sklyarov accepted the condition, and the directors of Nizhny Novgorod factories carried out mobilization efforts within their workforces; as a result, a substantial increase in turnout and votes for Sklyarov was delivered by the industrial districts — Vyksa, Kulebaki, Bor, Dzerzhinsk, and Nizhny Novgorod — where his margin over his rival exceeded 22 percent.

Honoring the promise made to the industrialists, Sklyarov agreed with NAPP on the candidate for first deputy governor: the post went to Aleksandr Vasilyevich Batyrev, who had previously headed a television factory and who served in that capacity for nearly five years — until Sklyarov's defeat in the 2001 election.[5] Dmitry Lavrov, head of the Department of Industry, described NAPP in discussing his work as the second authority after the governor — one that "not only assessed but also directed the department's activities."[3] Together with the deputy corps of the first convocation of the Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Region, NAPP developed the country's first regional legislation on industrial policy.

On December 19, 1995, the day after the gubernatorial election in which Boris Nemtsov won in the first round with more than 58 percent of the vote, the NAPP council was already reviewing the concept of regional industrial policy proposed by the Department of Industry — and so began the joint work of the association and the regional executive branch on drafting a regional law on industrial policy.[3] In the elections to the Regional Legislative Assembly of the second convocation in 1998, the association sought to secure no fewer than half of the seats for industrialists; as a result of this effort, an agreement was reached that the chairs of the committees on industry and economics would be drawn exclusively from deputies with an industrial background.[4] At the 2024 anniversary events, it was noted that "RSPP is proud of its first regional branch."[1] The association builds partnership relations with regional authorities: the deputy governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region responsible for industrial development, Andrey Sanosyan, and the head of the Nizhny Novgorod Ministry of Industry, Maksim Cherkasov, described NAPP as a reliable partner in the development of the region's industry.[1]

Leadership and Membership

The post of president of the association was held by Vladimir Ilyich Luzyanin — a prominent organizer of Nizhny Novgorod's defense industry and chairman of the board of directors of the Nizhny Novgorod open joint-stock company Hydromash, known as a "red director."[1] Luzyanin was one of the founders of NAPP, and the story of his involvement in the organization was covered in a special project dedicated to the association's 35th anniversary.[1] The position of first vice-president was held by Kostyukov Valentin Yefimovich.[1] As of the association's 35th anniversary, the post of general director of NAPP was held by Aleksandr Anosov. In 2022, Aleksandr Anosov, in his capacity as executive director of NAPP, took part in meetings of the association's territorial branches.[6][1]

The association and its council brought together a wide range of leaders from Nizhny Novgorod enterprises and organizations. Among the members and participants of the anniversary events were Alexander Luzyanin (son of Vladimir Luzyanin, General Director of "Gidromash")[1], Viktor Klochay (Vice President of the RSPP, head of the GK "Ruspolimet")[1], Dmitry Barykin (head of JSC "Zavod Krasny Yakor")[1], Viktor Tyatinkin (head of "Teploobmennik")[1], Vsevolod Evstigneev (VTB manager in Nizhny Novgorod Region)[1], Evgeniy Lyulin (Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Region)[1], Vladimir Aleksandrovich Batenkov, Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Mineev (deputy of the Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Region), Yegor Leontyevich Kaloshin (Honorary Citizen of Nizhny Novgorod Region, member of the Council of the Nizhny Novgorod Currency and Stock Exchange), Panyshev Dmitry Olegovich, Sergey Borisovich Samoylov.[1]

Recognition and Partners

In 2019, the Nizhny Novgorod Association of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs sent a letter of appreciation to Oleg Vladimirovich Trofimov, who subsequently became rector of Lobachevsky University.[7] For the association's 35th anniversary in 2024, a special media project titled "NAPP: 35 Years Together" was produced, in which partners and members of the organization publicly described the association as "one of the strongest in the country."[1] In December 2024, a ceremonial gathering of Nizhny Novgorod's executive corps was held to mark the anniversary, and in December 2025 the General Director of Gidromash, Alexander Luzyanin, took part in the next NAPP general meeting, where the results of the region's real-sector performance were reviewed and objectives for the coming year were discussed.[1]

Links

The official address of NAPP is: 603001, Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhne-Volzhskaya Embankment, 5/2; the organization's contact phone number is +7 (831) 433-33-29, email — infonapp@sandy.ru.[8]

In early September 2020, NAPP launched a Facebook page to complement its existing website and Instagram account; the first post featured material about the Nizhny Novgorod enterprise NPO Transport", which develops transport and technological machinery.[8]

NAPP initiated a fundraising campaign for the creation of the monument "To the Gorky People — Valiant Home Front Workers", erected in connection with Nizhny Novgorod being awarded the title "City of Labor Valor"; enterprises and private donors affiliated with the association raised a total of more than 17 million rubles, of which over 2.5 million rubles were contributed by enterprise directors and civic-minded Nizhny Novgorod residents.[9]

The supreme collegial governing body of NAPP is the Association's Council, which holds sessions including off-site meetings. The registered address of the association is Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhne-Volzhskaya Embankment, 5/2; according to the organization's charter, the permanent collegial governing body of NAPP is its Council.[10] In August 2020, at a general meeting of NAPP, industrialists publicly voiced concern over the state of affairs in the real sector of the regional economy. General meetings of NAPP traditionally attract not only association members but also representatives of regional government: the deputy governor responsible for industry, the Chairman of the Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Region, the Chairman of the Nizhny Novgorod City Duma, as well as heads of relevant ministries and agencies are regularly in attendance.

NAPP participates in the work of the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Tripartite Commission for the Regulation of Social and Labor Relations — a permanent social partnership body bringing together regional government, trade unions, and employers; the commission has been operating in Nizhny Novgorod Region since 1996 and addresses issues of wages, occupational safety, professional development, and social guarantees for workforce collectives.[34] In July 2021, the next general meeting of ROR "NAPP" members, at which the results of the region's enterprises for the first half of the year were reviewed, was held in the Heraldic Hall of the Nizhny Novgorod Yarmarka; the event was attended by around one hundred enterprise directors who are association members, as well as Governor Gleb Nikitin, Legislative Assembly Chairman Evgeniy Lyulin, Deputy Governor Andrey Sanosyan, and Minister of Industry Maxim Cherkasov.[11] According to Tsybanev's assessment, the regional budget and the funding for Nizhny Novgorod's preparations for its 800th anniversary were substantially formed through the enterprises that are NAPP members, reflecting the association's significant contribution to the economy of Nizhny Novgorod Region.[12] The Chairman of the Nizhny Novgorod City Duma Oleg Lavrichev was a member of the NAPP Council.

The NAPP Council also included I. A. Razuvayev, Director General of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry.[13][12] In August 2021, a regular meeting of the NAPP Council was held at the Arsenal of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin; at the meeting, jubilee medals "In Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of Nizhny Novgorod" were presented to industrialists, entrepreneurs, and veterans of the association, with the medals awarded by Andrey Sanosyan, Deputy Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region.[12] At the November 2020 NAPP general meeting, held in videoconference format, approximately 150 participants were registered; attendees included, in particular, the Managing Director of JSC "VMZ" A. M. At the end of 2020, an expanded meeting of the NAPP Council was held in videoconference format for the first time in the organization's more than thirty-year history — owing to restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] Barykov, Vice President of GAZ Group E. V. Matveyeva, as well as representatives of the RSPP.

Following the December 2020 meeting, the NAPP Council put forward an initiative to establish a special coordinating council under the Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region that would bring together the heads of relevant ministries and agencies with the leaders of leading industrial enterprises and associations — for the prompt resolution of industrial problems; the Coordinating Council was envisioned as an operational headquarters for putting specific enterprises on a development trajectory.[14] At the NAPP Council meeting in December 2020, the President of PJSC "GAZ" Nikolai Pugin, whom the participants referred to as "the doyen of the Nizhny Novgorod directors' corps," drew industrialists' attention to the problem of rising metal prices and the reduction of rolled metal supplies to the domestic market, warning of the risk of a chain reaction of price increases for industrial products.[10][15] At the NAPP Council meeting in October 2022, members of the organization unanimously resolved to support the initiative of Nizhny Novgorod Region Governor Gleb Nikitin to maintain the wages of mobilized members of labor collectives at enterprises across the region.[16][9]

Within the structure of NAPP there operate territorial employers' associations: in particular, the "Association of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Gorodetsky District of Nizhny Novgorod Region" functions in the Gorodetsky District of Nizhny Novgorod Region, with its meetings held at the Zavolzhye business incubator. The Arzamas Association of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs "Razvitiye" (AAPP "Razvitiye"), which as of 2022 united 40 members — industrial enterprises, organizations, entrepreneurs, as well as educational and medical institutions — is also part of the NAPP structure as a territorial employers' association.[6] In 2022, LLC "Promeksport-Servis" — a Nizhny Novgorod company specializing in industrial services: machine and equipment maintenance, industrial cleaning, filtration and disposal of lubricants and process fluids for manufacturing enterprises — became a member of NAPP.[17] Meetings of the district associations within NAPP address matters of workforce training: in particular, they discuss cooperation between industrial enterprises and vocational education institutions and the formation of a personnel reserve.

NIIIS — a Nizhny Novgorod enterprise that is a member of NAPP — has since the early 1990s been the lead developer of software and hardware systems for the automation of technological processes at Gazprom enterprises; by 2021, four generations of such systems had been developed, equipping more than 26,000 kilometers of Russia's main gas pipelines.[18] At the NAPP general meeting in December 2021, one of the central topics was the training of personnel for industry: the meeting was held at the Krasnoye Sormovo Palace of Culture in Nizhny Novgorod.[19] The discussion involved the management of PJSC "Krasnoye Sormovo Plant," the regional Ministry of Education, and vocational training institutions of the region. Representatives of employment agencies also took part in the discussion.[19]

OKBM Afrikantov — an enterprise within NAPP — as part of its diversification efforts developed and launched production of the first domestically manufactured cryogenic pump designed for transferring liquefied natural gas.[18] Among NAPP member enterprises, 70th Anniversary of Victory Plant was mastering production of equipment for subsea hydrocarbon extraction, including column head sealing rings, which were displayed in 2021 at the Almaz-Antey concern's stand at the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum. In November 2022, at the XII International Forum "Atomexpo" in Sochi, Nizhny Novgorod enterprises — association members — presented their products for the nuclear industry: the Ruspolimet group of companies displayed items made from specialty steels and alloys, metal powders for additive manufacturing technologies, and participated in cooperative production of a transport-packaging set for the storage and transportation of spent nuclear fuel, while the Sealing Materials Plant presented developments in the field of radiation protection, including radiation-protective mats, mastics, and quick-release thermal insulation.[20][18] Based on the results of 2021, according to data presented at the December NAPP general meeting, the physical volume index of industrial production in the Nizhny Novgorod Region stood at 105% of the 2019 level and 114% of the 2020 level; enterprises in the region shipped products worth 1.2 trillion rubles.

Under conditions of sanctions pressure, NAPP intensified its work on industrial cooperation: in March 2022, at the association's premises with the support of Ministry of Construction of Nizhny Novgorod Region, a working meeting was held between representatives of enterprises producing construction materials and machine-building companies, at which participants discussed the problem of limited access to imported components for production equipment and outlined ways to resolve it through placing orders with Nizhny Novgorod metalworking enterprises. As part of developing inter-regional cooperative ties, a NAPP delegation made a business visit to Vladimir Region — to Vyazniki — where they toured the town-forming enterprises of OSVAR PJSC and the Mstyora Ceramic Wall Materials Plant and held negotiations on establishing production cooperation.[33] Following the meeting under NAPP's auspices, it was decided to create a dedicated information resource aggregating current requests from construction materials enterprises and performing a dispatching function for distributing orders among metalworking enterprises.[21][22][23]

NAPP's legal organizational form is "Regional Employers' Association," which reflects its status as an association representing the interests of employers before government bodies and trade unions.[22]

One of NAPP's founders was Sharadze Omari Khasanovich — the first head of the City of Gorky elected on a competitive basis at a session of the City Council in April 1990.[4]

The full official name of the organization is ROR "NAPP" (regional public organization); legal address: 603001, Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhne-Volzhskaya Embankment, 5/2.[14]

For a number of years, NAPP has supported the Technical Museum of Nizhny Novgorod, which features exhibits devoted to the development of domestic and Nizhny Novgorod industry. At an extended session of the NAPP Council in May 2022, held at the Regional Legislative Assembly, the industrialists unanimously endorsed the idea of establishing a museum of industry and science of the Nizhny Novgorod Region on the basis of the Nizhny Novgorod Technical Museum, founded on a voluntary initiative by Vyacheslav Khurtin; Khurtin was tasked with developing the concept, the exhibition, and potential premises for the future museum, together with NAPP Executive Director Aleksandr Anosov. At the same session, the NAPP Council resolved to develop a concept for commemorating the directors of Nizhny Novgorod enterprises who made a significant contribution to the Region's industrial development; among the "legendary directors" named during the discussion were Yefim Rubinchik, Ivan Biryukov, Yuliy Sedakov, Pavel Plandin, Vladimir Luzyanin, Boris Vidyayev, Vladimir Pomolov, and Nikolay Zharkov; the task of developing the concept was assigned to Oleg Lavrichev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arzamas Instrument-Making Plant named after P. I. Plandin, and to Aleksandr Sedakov, First Deputy Director of RFNC-VNIIEF.[24][13]

In November 2021, NAPP organized a two-day business mission by Nizhny Novgorod industrialists to Kaliningrad: eight enterprises of the Nizhny Novgorod Region met with shipbuilding and ship-repair companies of that region — PSZ Yantar, Pregol, and the Ushakov Shipyards — with the aim of developing cooperative ties between the two regions. During the business mission, the parties agreed to coordinate their efforts in engaging with federal legislators and the government on issues facing the shipbuilding industry.[25]

At that time, Spitsyn held the position of Head of the Economic Department of the Regional Party Committee and, in Luzyanin's words, was engaged "directly and very closely" in the organizational work of establishing the association.[2]

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