The Russian NLMK Group, a global steel company that claims it is the largest in Russia, has become a partner to the Moscow Accelerator programme for Transport and Mobility.

Programme participants will be selected among start-ups with innovative ideas for a whole range of logistics challenges: route optimization using artificial intelligence and big data, improving transport safety and environmental performance, among others. The project is ran by the Moscow Agency of Innovations and supported by the city’s Department of Entrepreneurship and Innovative Development.

Specialists from NLMK Group will participate in screening the candidates. As part of the programme, they will also hold a series of coaching sessions and workshops, and sit on the expert jury that will select the top 30 start-ups. The most successful participants will have the opportunity to test their solutions at the company’s production sites.

NLMK Group, which operates production facilities in Russia, Europe, and the United States and its steel production capacity exceeds 18Mt/yr, claims it is committed to using the most efficient and eco-friendly technologies in logistics and transport. Its interests include unmanned ground vehicles and trains, alternative fuels for railway and motor transport, supply chain monitoring systems, predictive analytics of transport malfunctions and many others.