[3] According to archaeological records, the Yelabuga settlement was first established in the age of Volga Bulgaria, arising at the confluence where the Poima River meets the Kama.

[4][3] The “Alabuga” SEZ — the largest and most successful special economic zone dedicated to industrial and production of its type in Russia — is located in the region.

This park is unique in that the vegetation characteristic of three natural zones are found here with woodlands existing adjacent to forest-steppe and floodplain-meadow landscapes.

District activists are concerned about the air pollution caused by emissions from petrochemical plants in Nizhnekamsk and Naberezhnye Chelny.

In the center of the shield, there is a black oak stump with a red woodpecker with golden eyes and a beak sitting on it on a silvery-white background.

The main plot is preserved, however, in the upper part, instead of a silver background, a white one is presented, and a green hill is replaced by a flat line.

As the geographer Yevgeny Pospelov states, the toponym comes from the Turkic personal name Alabuga, which could literally mean “motley bull”.

At the turn of the 11th century, the Bulgars built a fortress at the confluence of the Poima and Kama rivers to protect the northeastern borders of their state.

The ancient Yelabuga settlement was an important stronghold on the trade route to the Middle and Upper Kama regions.

The small Tatar settlement of Alabuga was named Tryokhsvyatskoe in honor of the icon of Saints Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom brought here by colonizers.

In 1780, Tryokhsvyatskoye received the status of a city with the name Yelabuga as part of the eponymous uyezd of the Vyatka governorship (since 1797 - the province).

[20] In the 18th-19th centuries the region’s population was primarily engaged in arable farming, cattle breeding, fishing and trades.

The difficulty of drilling was determined by the fact that the project was carried out in the flooded zone of the Nizhnekamsk hydroelectric power station and marked the first time in the history of Tatarstan that oil wells were placed on specially organized dams and islands.

Of the primary industries, mining makes a significant contribution to the regional economy, while the infrastructure sector is also well developed and has demonstrated a high level of attractiveness for investment.

The district is also home to the Yelabuzhskii avtomobilniy zavod (the Yelabuga Automobile Plant), the industrial companies Yelabuga UkuprPlast and KamPolyBeg, as well as the food industry enterprises “Essen Production AG” (producing famous mayonnaise brand “Makheev”) and “Alabuga Sote”.

The district unemployment rate of 4.63% is one of the highest in the republic and has grown significantly as a consequence of the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Particular attention has been paid to the livestock and dairy industries that represent the main sources of income from regional agriculture during the off-season.

In 2020, the implementation of a large-scale project for the construction of the “Mir” dairy complex for 2,200 head of cattle began in the Yelabuzhsky region.

Total investment in Mir currently amounts to 620 million rubles and it is planned that the plant will produce up to 50 tons of milk per day.

[26][32] The Yelabuzhsky district is one of the ten largest and most promising industrial regions of Tatarstan, placing 8th in the ranking of socio-economic development for the first half of 2020.

[34] A significant contribution to the regional economy is made by the SEZ “Alabuga” — the largest and most successful special economic zone of industrial and production type in Russia.

This special economic zone with a footprint of almost four thousand hectares was opened in 2005 to develop the regional economy and attract investment.

As of 2020, 65 resident companies are partnered with “Alabuga”, including HAYAT, Rockwool, Armstrong World Industries, Transneft, Ford and others.

Among the favourable conditions created within the zone are tax and customs privileges, low rental prices, and the proximity of the M7 federal highway.

In the coming years, SEZ management plans to attract twice as many residents and create favorable conditions for small and medium-sized businesses.

[5][6] The Yelabuzhsky district is located in the Naberezhnye Chelninskaya agglomeration zone near the road and railroad crossing over the Kama.

[35] Recreational opportunities are provided by 255 sports facilities have been built in Yelabuga and the surrounding area, including two stadiums, an Ledovyi Palace, more than a hundred gyms, an athletics arena, ski resorts and skating rinks.

The largest cultural institution in the district is the Yelabuga State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve covering an area of 131 hectares.

Since 2008, the Yelabuga Museum-Reserve has annually held the traditional Spasskaya Fair, the heyday of which dates back to the pre-revolutionary era.

Additionally, the newspapers “Novaya Kama” and “Алабуга нуры” (“Luch Yelabugi”) are published in the district in the Russian and Tatar languages.