Methodological Toolkit for Assessing the Investment Attractiveness of Renewable Resources in Northern and Arctic Territories

Abstract

This article examines a pressing issue of assessing the investment attractiveness of renewable resources in underdeveloped Northern and Arctic territories that have a huge untapped natural resource potential. The subject of the study is the economic interactions that occur during the development of natural resource potential. The goal of this study is to develop the methodological toolkit for assessing the investment attractiveness for businesses and government authorities at various levels. At the pre-investment stage of development projects, we identified typical landscapes for zoning of the territory and assessed them for each type of renewable natural resources. Based on an analysis of existing approaches to natural resource zoning, the authors propose to identify three types of landscapes, including those that are attractive in terms of investment, those that are attractive in terms of investment with certain limitations, and those that are unattractive for investment. The study has confirmed the hypothesis that the selection of the most valuable natural resources expands the opportunities for their economic use. The investment attractiveness is determined by favorable geographical location, development of regional infrastructure, natural potential viewed as a priority object. The authors have provided the rationale for the need to valuate the natural resource potential of landscape areas within the boundaries of an assessed territory for the purposes of their ranking based on establishing the investment attractiveness. The limitations may be imposed by the low level of infrastructure development prerequisites, insufficient sustainability of landscapes to anthropogenic influences, export of raw materials for processing outside the territory, etc. The authors have substantiated the list of conditions that require the introduction of correction coefficients to the value indicators of natural resource potential in landscape areas. The main findings of the study are presented in the form of landscape zoning of the territory and methodological toolkit for assessing the investment attractiveness tested in Berezovsky Municipal District of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug—Yugra.