On Saturday, December 26, the opening ceremony of the ski infrastructure facilities took place in the new tourist village LunnayaPolyana at Arkhyz ATRC, and ski season 2015/2016 was started. The facilities built by the company Northern Caucasus Resorts during the year 2015 were opened by Lev Kuznetsov, the Minister of North Caucasus Affairs of the Russian Federation, Rashid Temrezov, the head of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic and Oleg Gorchev, Director General of JSC NCR. At the opening ceremony participants launched the first solemn slopes on new resort tracks developed by JSC NCR within the framework of the tourist cluster project in the North Caucasian Federal District, Krasnodar Territory and the Republic of Adygeya, and then estimated readiness of tracks to accept tourists and came down the slope.

"New year 2016 is coming, and I am very glad that JSC NCR has made a present to the resort guests having opened a new tourist village LunnayaPolyana and modern infrastructure facilities which are ready and will soon begin to receive tourists,” said at the opening ceremony Lev Kuznetsov, the Minister of the North Caucasus Affairs of the Russian Federation. He thanked all the participants of the process headed by JSC North Caucasus Resorts for qualitative work. "We open the third season at this resort already. Quality and quantity of tracks, valley infrastructure is improving," underlined Lev Kuznetsov.

The Minister expressed his hope that the resort would be especially in demand among children and youth, "who will strengthen their health”, and in the future might provide Russia at any international competitions. "I want future Olympic champions to begin their career path at Arkhyz. I wish that during Olympic Games in 2022 someone of athletes would say that it was in Arkhyz where he had started skiing for the first time. And we will continue to create all conditions for that," added the Minister.

Rashid Temrezov, the head of the Karachay-Cherkessia, called ArkhyzATRC project strategic for the Republic and competitive at the Russian level. "Today we have gone down the slopes, having come to them using a new modern lift. This lift is one of the longest in the country. This demonstrates considerable pace of development of the resort, which is still evolving, but it already demonstrates high tourist flow. We have already proven our competitiveness, and now residents of different parts of Russia have desire to come here again,” noted the head of the Republic.

During the ceremony, Director General of JSC NCR Oleg Gorchev thanked the Minister of the North Caucasus Affairs Lev Kuznetsov and the head of Karachay-Cherkess Republic Rashid Temrezov. "Their personal involvement in the project has enabled to build everything in such a short period of time," said the head of JSC NCR.  He especially noted the well coordinated work of all project participants both on the part of JSC NCR and general contractor which is Rosengineering company: "I appreciate the work done by everybody who, being aware of the importance and ambitiousness of the tasks, has put personal efforts to the project to be completed on time.

In total, in 2015, the Company invested approximately 3.3 billion rubles for ArkhyzATRC infrastructure development,” said Oleg Gorchev. "In a new season there will be about 14 kilometers of tracks with snowmaking system on each of them, a new lift for 2,200 persons per hour, which will increase ropeway capacity by 50% and will also be linked to others by a single ski pass, multi-functional centre with additional hire, cafes and restaurants. I hope all our clients will be satisfied with what they will see here," noted Oleg Gorchev.

Speaking about the plans for further development of Arkhyz over the next several years, he said that at that time they were designing a ropeway at the height of 3,000 m on the southern slope to the top of Abishir-Akhub Ridge, and multipurpose centre at the same elevations. The lift will provide access of tourists to the freeride area, climbing, sky decks, restaurant with a view, and in the future - to new ski slopes.

“The facilities are designed within the framework of the northern slope development, where natural snow cover stays much longer than on the southern slope. Five more "red" and "blue" slopes with artificial snow will be created here in the next few years. Modern gondola lift road with intermediate stations will connect the northern and southern slopes, allowing resort guests to move freely from one Arkhyz ridge to the other. Also on the right bank we will build a parking lot for visitors, engineering infrastructure for potential residents, who will be offered plots for commercial development on the northern slope," said Oleg Gorchev.