The Russian government will channel at least 400 billion rubles ($13 billion) into the development of shipping, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.
"We plan to channel at least 400 billion rubles from federal resources into the development of shipping in the next 10 years," Putin said.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday signed a federal law that offers tax breaks and other incentives to domestic shipbuilding and shipping companies to stimulate their development.
The law, already approved by the lower and upper houses of Russia's parliament, offers Russian shipyards the status of industrial and production special economic zones in a bid to boost their output.
Russian shipyards will be exempt from land and property tax for 10 years while ship owners will also be tax-exempt from profits received from the operation or sale of Russian-built vessels.
The new law will also exempt domestic shipbuilding and shipping companies from insurance payments to Russia's Pension, Social Insurance and Compulsory Medical Insurance Funds.
Russia's shipping industry has experienced two decades of crisis caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union and disruptions in the supply chain across the country, and the country is now largely reliant on foreign shipyards for the construction of new ships.
The new law aims to revive the domestic industry.
