Technical textiles as the foundation of Russia’s technological sovereignty

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Which materials will form the foundation of technological sovereignty? Can business, science and government speak the same language? Is it possible to combine import substitution with export potential? Who or what will create the materials of the future? These questions were the focus of the session "New Materials for a New Economy: Dialogue Between Business, Science and Government" at the National Centre RUSSIA. It was a key discussion held as part of the programme of the International Forum of Technical Textiles 2025.

"Technical textiles will take their place in the new strategy for the development of the light industry. We will formalise measures to increase the share of Russian-made materials, support innovation and support exports. This is our long-term growth plan," Anton Alikhanov said.

The Minister of Industry noted that a number of key projects have already received support from the ministry. These include the creation of a full-cycle production of textile membranes, as well as the development of innovative antimicrobial footwear for medical professionals and related sectors. He also noted that, with the support of the Industrial Development Fund, projects aimed at increasing productivity are being implemented. According to Anton Alikhanov, this makes it possible not only to create new products, but also to strengthen the sector’s production base.

"From the perspective of the light industry’s performance, this year, despite the challenging situation, growth of around 10% in value terms is expected year on year. The strongest growth is being shown by the clothing manufacturing segment, where it will exceed 24%. We expect further increases in output volumes and believe this has become possible thanks to a balanced policy of support for the sector. Since 2015 alone, around 97 projects have received concessional loans from the Industrial Development Fund, totalling more than 30 billion roubles. Naturally, this is delivering results," shared the Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Yurin.

He noted that support had been provided to enterprises focused on producing import-substituting products in the fields of industrial, medical, construction and protective textiles. At the same time, he said, foreign policy factors and sanctions restrictions are also affecting the sector. To overcome these barriers, it is necessary to coordinate the efforts of industry, the state and the scientific community. This includes the national project for technological leadership "New Materials and Chemistry", launched in 2025. The Deputy Minister stated that the implementation of these projects over the next two to three years will make it possible to obtain domestic raw materials for the production of high-quality products.

"I am pleased with today’s opportunity to bring together in my address two industries that are strategically important for our country: the chemical industry and the light industry," said Artur Smirnov, Director of the Department of the Chemical Industry of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia.

He also noted that an interdepartmental commission will take place tomorrow, during which a number of projects in key areas of raw material supply for the light industry will be reviewed. Among them is a project by PJSC Tatneft named after V.D. Shashin, which includes the creation of production facilities across the chain "paraxylene — terephthalic acid — fibre-grade polyethylene terephthalate — fibre products". Approval is also expected for a project by Titan Group, which will result in the production of products such as film-grade PET, bottle-grade PET and polybutylene terephthalate. The implementation of these projects will make it possible to fully close one of the integrated chains from raw materials to finished products that the Department is developing within the framework of the national project "New Materials and Chemistry" — fibre-grade PET.

The Deputy Head of the Secretariat of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation and Executive Secretary of the Commission for Scientific and Technological Development of the Russian Federation, Antony Shvindt, highlighted the role of artificial intelligence in the development of the domestic chemical industry.

"Artificial intelligence today acts as a new tool for research and the creation of materials with specified properties, accelerating scientific and technological progress. We can see the existing groundwork and experience in this area. For example, a neural network was developed to search for inorganic compounds. As a result, the model identified 2.2 million new chemical compounds with various properties. These compounds can be used in industry. There are also various start-ups and projects being implemented by universities and research institutes that make it possible, for instance, to automate the analysis of scientific datasets. I would like to recall that the President separately emphasised the role of AI in accelerating scientific research at the conference "Journey into the World of Artificial Intelligence", and substantial work is currently under way in this direction," he said.

Antony Shvindt also noted that, in order to achieve the goals of the national project "Chemistry and New Materials", an operational task force on the application of artificial intelligence in chemistry has been established. It brings together leading scientists and researchers from major universities and research organisations.

Efforts are also under way to find ways to unite the actions of the state, business and society. This was stated by the Deputy of the State Duma and Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Industry and Trade, Alexander Spiridonov.

"We are talking about uniting the efforts of the state, business and society. Just a few days ago, we held an exposition dedicated to the light industry. It involved relevant committees, the Chairman of the State Duma, Vyacheslav Viktorovich Volodin, and the leaders of parliamentary factions. A significant number of problematic issues were raised. As a result, a decision was taken — which many of you may have already heard about — to hold parliamentary hearings at the end of January dedicated to the development of the light industry. In this context, colleagues, in the run-up to these hearings we will be working through all these issues and related questions, and it is very important that you submit your materials, proposals and pain points — the problems that need to be brought forward for discussion at the parliamentary hearings together with the Government of the Russian Federation and the relevant ministry. We will examine these issues in the greatest possible detail," the parliamentarian emphasised.

The global market for technical textiles and new materials currently stands at USD 320—350 billion and continues to grow, and by 2030 it could exceed USD 400 billion, noted the moderator, radio and television presenter Anatoly Kuzichev. At the same time, Russia has the potential to occupy between 2 and 5 percent of this market, which is important not only from an economic perspective, but also in terms of reputation and technological sovereignty. According to him, the main challenge lies not in the technologies themselves or in lagging behind, but in fragmentation: despite strong competencies and high demand from various industries, segments often operate in isolation and fail to generate the necessary synergy.

"We all live in circumstances in which we are forced to build a new economy. The future does not immediately take shape as a complete picture — it is formed from elements, from pieces of a mosaic. New materials are precisely one of those elements, without which the picture of our shared future will be incomplete <...> There is no industry, no sector of the national economy where new materials, and technical textiles in particular, are not in extremely high demand. We are talking about sovereignty. We are striving to achieve political sovereignty, but we must also achieve economic and technological sovereignty. This is a far from trivial task," Anatoly Kuzichev added.