Russia's Tech Hopes Short-Circuit: Domestic Parts Cost 8x More Than Chinese Ones

The irony of trying to mandate local production when there is practically nothing to produce with is hitting hard. Consortium of Printed Circuit Boards (CPP) has officially admitted that supply chain logistics and sanctions are strangling the production of printed circuit boards. The group, representing major players like Yadro, GS Group, Resonit, and Technotech, sent a desperate letter to the authorities requesting to scrap the mandatory use of local materials in government regulations.

Switching to domestic materials—if they can even be found—would increase manufacturing costs by two to eight times compared to imported alternatives. Olga Kozhukhovskaya, head of CPP, pointed out that materials make up 40% of the total cost of a board, and the current 'Russian' substitutes are often just relabeled imports or simply don't work as advertised. Independent tests have already flagged suppliers for listing fake specs, leading to their inclusion in a registry of unreliable vendors.

As the fourth quarter approaches—the traditional peak for electronics manufacturing—the industry is staring down a massive deficit. While companies like Vintech, Electroresurs, and Bobrovsky Insulation Plant exist, they simply cannot handle the scale required for modern electronics. Chinese boards and raw materials remain consistently 40–60% cheaper, making the domestic push look less like a strategy and more like a very expensive bonfire.

Building a high-tech sector by cutting off global supply chains and forcing reliance on inefficient, overpriced local alternatives is a bold choice for anyone who hates progress. It turns out that physics and economics care very little about government decrees or industrial pride.