INSTITUTIONAL “SPACE COMPRESSION” AND SPATIAL SELECTIVITY OF GAS-BASED INDUSTRIAL LOCATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF BURYATIA

<jats:p>The article examines how institutional support measures influence the spatial choice of a location for gas-based industrial production in the Republic of Buryatia. The study is relevant because trunk gas infrastructure does not automatically localize industrial effects: an investment decision depends on the length of an individual connection, the position of an economic node, the availability of infrastructure, and the applicable support regime. The aim is to quantify institutional “space compression” as a change in the maximum economically feasible connection length. The methodology combines scenario-based GIS mapping with a financial-spatial model of a single reference methanol plant with a design capacity of 500 thousand tonnes per year. With technological and market parameters held constant, the length of the individual gas pipeline and the institutional regime are varied; feasibility is assessed using NPV, IRR, and the threshold L* corresponding to NPV = 0. In the baseline demonstration calculation, L* is approximately 31.0 km. An author-designed scenario with a zero regional profit-tax rate for a qualifying project under a special investment contract increases the threshold to 111.1 km; its combination with a property-tax concession raises it to 131.6 km, while an investment-protection agreement scenario covering 30% of eligible individual infrastructure costs increases it to 37.6 km. Comparison of Ulan-Ude, Gusinoozersk, and Kyakhta/Naushki shows that the financially most attractive location and the territory with the greatest structural effect may differ. The study substantiates spatially selective support focused primarily on locations close to the investment-feasibility boundary.</jats:p>