Moscow, 12 September 2025 — Nornickel announces that on 16 September, it will begin accepting applications for its annual Social Projects Competition, part of the “People of the Territory” social capital development programme. The competition aims to support public initiatives and foster development in the regions where Nornickel operates.

The grant fund for the competition is RUB 155 mln. Non-profit organisations, state and municipal institutions, as well as the Company's corporate volunteers in partnership with NPOs and institutions, are invited to participate.

The competition’s geography covers Krasnoyarsk Krai (Norilsk and Taimyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District, Svetlogorsk village in the Turukhansky District), Murmansk Oblast (Monchegorsk and its subordinate territory, Pechenga Municipal District, Lovozero village, Krasnoshchelye village in the Lovozersky District), and Zabaykalsky Krai (Chita, Borzya, and Gazimuro-Zavodsky Municipal District).

Projects can be submitted in nine categories:

Pole of Goodness — volunteering and support for socially vulnerable groups;
Pole of the Future — initiatives for children and young people;
Pole of the City — urban improvement and creation of public spaces;
Pole of Revival — culture and art;
Pole of Energy — sports and healthy lifestyle;
Pole of Nature — ecology and environmental preservation;
Pole of the North — Arctic tourism and protection of rare species;
Pole of Growth — development of NPOs;
New Pole — projects by children’s and youth teams.

The winners will have the opportunity to implement their own social project with grant support from the Company ranging from RUB 100,000 to RUB 6.5 mln.

This year, the competition launch is accompanied by the presentation of a new educational course, “Drivers”. Its goal is to help social project authors strengthen their ideas, learn to address the needs of their target audiences, and improve the quality of their applications.

“When established formats no longer generate new ideas, the active participants in our programmes need a reboot. This is how the ‘Drivers’ project came about, focusing on proactive citizens who are ready to take action for the benefit of their community, inspiring others with their energy and engaging them in collaborative work,” said Irina Zhuikova, Head of Nornickel’s Social Policy Department.

Applications can be submitted on the website nncharity.ru from 16 September to 5 November 2025 (until 19:00 local time). The results will be announced in January 2026, with the projects scheduled to launch in March.

For the convenience of applicants, tips and training materials are available in their personal accounts on the website. During the application period, participants will have access to online and offline consultations with competition curators and can take part in a series of webinars with experts in social investment, data visualisation, and modern presentation tools.

Note for editors

In the spring of 2025, Nornickel's social initiatives were consolidated into a large-scale programme, “People of the Territory”. It has become a new space for active citizens and the Company's employees to develop ideas, find like-minded people, and launch their own projects.

The programme includes four tracks: “Inventors”, “Creators”, “Entrepreneurs”, and “Volunteers”.

The “People of the Territory” programme preserves the best formats, practices, and experience gained over 10 years, while opening up even more opportunities for the development of participants and the regions where the Company operates.

For more details, visit the VKontakte group at https://vk.com/luditerritorii and contact the regional managers of the “People of the Territory” programme.

Nornickel announces the new season of its Social Projects Competition