On March 18, XV International exhibition “Energy. Resource saving” started its work in Kazan. Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov, Chairman of the Supervision Council of State Corporation “Housing and Utility Reform Foundation” Sergey Stepashin, Tatarstan Prime Minister Ildar Khalikov, Russian Deputy Minister of Energy Anton Inyutsyn, Board Chairman of the State Corporation "Housing and Utility Reform Foundation" Konstantin Tsitsin took part in a solemn opening ceremony of the exhibition at the Kazanskaya Yarmarka Exhibition Center.

More than 170 enterprises from 36 Russian regions as well as 65 Tatarstan companies are taking part in the exhibition, representing state-of-the-art equipment and advanced technologies in the sphere of energy and resource-saving.

“At the exhibition we can see the progress that has happened in the world. Many ideas, technologies, represented at the exhibition, will be introduced at our industrial enterprises, socio-cultural, as well as housing and utilities facilities,” Rustam Minnikhanov said, speaking at the ceremony.

“Our country must meet the world’s standards on energy efficiency and today’s exhibition helps us fulfill this task,” Rustam Minnikhanov added.

Tatarstan President thanked Russian Ministry of Energy for the programmes, being implemented in the energy-saving sphere. “We are taking an active part in these programmes that allow us to take to a new performance level,” Rustam Minnikhanov noted.

Rustam Minnikhanov is sure that the exhibition will be useful both for its guests and participants.

Speaking at the ceremony, Sergey Stepashin called energy-saving the most topical and serious issue for our country. “Russia is rich in recourses, but we waste them easily. Our economy is energy-intensive, with 70 per cent of energy loss going to the housing and municipal economy sector. I am very pleased that today Tatarstan has started an active work on energy-saving in the housing and municipal economy sphere,” Sergey Stepashin said.

Welcoming participants of the exhibition, Anton Inyutsyn said that Tatarstan is one of the leading Russian regions in energy saving. In the last three years, energy intensity of production went down by 11 per cent, which is two times more compared to the national average, he said.

After the solemn opening of the exhibition, distinguished guests looked around the exposition.

To the point, a session of Tatarstan Cabinet of Ministers "On implementation of regional programme in the sphere of energy saving, increasing energy efficiency in 2013 and setting tasks for 2014" will be held within the framework of the exhibition, which will be open till March 20.