Renewable Energy In Russia
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Renewable energy in Russia mainly consists of hydroelectric energy. Russia is rich not only in
oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) and lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...
,
gas Gas is a state of matter that has neither a fixed volume nor a fixed shape and is a compressible fluid. A ''pure gas'' is made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon) or molecules of either a single type of atom ( elements such as ...
and
coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...
, but also in
wind Wind is the natural movement of atmosphere of Earth, air or other gases relative to a planetary surface, planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heatin ...
, hydro, geothermal, biomass and solar energy – the resources of renewable energy. Practically all regions have at least one or two forms of renewable energy that are commercially exploitable, while some regions are rich in all forms of renewable energy resources. However, fossil fuels dominate Russia’s current energy mix, while its abundant and diverse renewable energy resources play little role.


History

Most of Russia's renewable energy sources are new and have grown in the past few years. Russia was an early leader in the development of renewable energy technologies, but for a variety of reasons, it lost interest in their development except for large hydropower. Hydroelectric power has a long history in Russia, dating back to the Soviet era. The rapid expansion of hydroelectric power in the Soviet Union began in 1930, when the total installed capacity equaled 600 MWh. The
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
built its first windmill in 1941, which had a capacity of 100 kW. By the time the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, it had a total installed capacity of . The largest dams that Russia currently has, including the Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam, were built in the 1950s and 1960s. From the 1970s to 2000, the Soviet Union and Russia focused mainly on "traditional" power sources: thermal-, hydro- and nuclear power. However, in 1986, the Soviet government announced new energy goals, which included further hydroelectric plant construction as well as the start of small-scale solar and wind use for electricity production. Overall, Soviet energy policy focused on nuclear and thermal power, although renewable energy was not completely neglected. The
dissolution of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Declaration No. 142-Н of ...
prevented those goals from being fulfilled. With the formation of the Russian Federation in the 1990s, most of the big dams that were built in the Soviet Union stopped being built. Also, the post-Soviet recession caused a lot of the country's infrastructure, like dams, to break down. Use of oil and gas for energy took priority in Russia, and renewable energy was ignored. This policy lasted until 2008, when Medvedev announced reforms to Russia's energy policies in an attempt to focus more on renewable energy. Since then, there has been a rapid development of new renewable energy sources.


Current status


Overview

In late 2009,
Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
made an ambitious declaration, expressing his intent to reduce Russia's energy consumption by 40% by the year 2020. However, several factors were impeding progress towards this goal. These obstacles included insufficient investments, economic instability, limited public demand, and the presence of low tariffs on heat and electricity. Additionally, the prevalence of subsidies for natural gas posed another significant challenge to the development of renewable energy in the country. Some of Russia's hydroelectric power plants are outdated and are in need of additional investment, as shown by the 2009 accident at the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP. Overall, in the years following 2009, Russia had not taken sufficient measures to establish the necessary conditions for the advancement of renewable energy.In 2015, Russia ranked as the fifth-largest producer of
hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...
globally, with hydroelectricity contributing to nearly 16.0% of its total electricity generation. However, renewable energy sources, excluding large-scale hydropower, played a minuscule role in Russia's energy landscape during the same year. BP's estimates suggested that these renewables accounted for just 0.05% of the nation's overall electricity generation in 2015. Russian authorities offered slightly more optimistic figures, but still not significantly so. According to the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat), renewables, excluding large hydropower projects with over 25 MW of installed capacity, constituted 0.19% of the entire electricity generation in 2015. To provide a global perspective, the proportion of hydropower in the worldwide electricity generation mix closely mirrored that of Russia at approximately 16.4%. Nevertheless, the share of other renewable energy sources in the global energy matrix was notably higher, standing at around 6.7%. This category encompasses wind power at 3.5%, solar energy at 1.05%, and additional sources such as geothermal and biomass energy, which collectively contributed 2.15%. In 2020, the renewables share of primary energy consumption is only 0.1%. Several studies confirm Russia's significant potential in the renewable energy sector while highlighting the limited development and utilization of this potential. Russia's renewable sector offers opportunities for scaling up resource development, including high export potential, domestic market growth, energy deficit mitigation,
hydrogen production Hydrogen gas is produced by several industrial methods. Nearly all of the world's current supply of hydrogen is created from fossil fuels. Article in press. Most hydrogen is ''gray hydrogen'' made through steam methane reforming. In this process, ...
, supportive policies, available land, and technological advancement. However, it continues to face significant challenges, such as an uneven playing field, local content requirements, government neglect of clean technologies, regulatory uncertainties, high project costs, harsh environmental conditions, and unfavorable institutional design.


Hydropower

Hydropower is the most used form of renewable energy in Russia, and there is large potential in Russia for more use of hydropower. Russia has 102 hydropower plants with capacities of over 100 MW, making it fifth in the world for hydropower production. It is also second in the world for hydro potential, yet only 20% of this potential is developed. Russia is home to 9% of the world's hydro resources, mostly in Siberia and the country's far east. At the end of 2005, the generating capacity from
hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...
sources in Russia was 45,700 MW, and an additional 5,648 MW was under construction. The
World Energy Council The World Energy Council is a global forum for thought-leadership and tangible engagement with headquarters in London. Its mission is 'To promote the sustainable supply and use of energy for the greatest benefit of all people'. The idea for the fo ...
believes that Russia has much potential for using its hydro resources, with a theoretical potential of about 2,295 TWh/yr, with 852 TWh being economically feasible. The largest dams in Russia are the Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam, which has an installed capacity of 6,400 MW; the
Krasnoyarsk Dam The Krasnoyarsk Dam is a high concrete gravity dam located on the Yenisey River about upstream from Krasnoyarsk in Divnogorsk, Russia. It was constructed from 1956 to 1972, and it supplies about 6,000 MW of electricity, mostly used to supply the ...
(6,000 MW); the
Bratsk Dam The Bratsk Hydroelectric Power Station (also referred to as The ''50 years of Great October'' Dam) is a concrete gravity dam on the Angara River and adjacent hydroelectric power station. It is the second level of the Angara River hydroelectric st ...
(4,500 MW); the Ust-Ilimsk Dam (4,320 MW) and the Zeya Dam (1,330 MW). Some of the most recent dam projects are the Bureya Dam (2010 MW) and the Irganai Dam (800 MW). The Boguchany Dam (1920 MW), Zelenchuk Dam (320 MW), Zaramag Dam (352 MW) and Nizhne-Chereksky (60 MW) are currently under construction.
RusHydro RusHydro (previous name: Hydro-OGK, ) is a Russian hydroelectricity company. As of early 2012 it had a capacity of 34.9  gigawatts. In late 2009, it was the world's second-largest hydroelectric power producer and is the country's largest p ...
is the largest hydroelectric company in Russia and the second largest hydroelectric producer in the world. In October 2010, China Yangtze Power, the largest hydropower corporation in China, and EuroSibEnergo, a Russian energy company, signed a cooperation agreement to expand hydroelectric energy production in Russia and export energy to China's northern territories.


Geothermal energy

Geothermal energy is the second most used form of renewable energy in Russia but represents less than 1% of the total energy production. The first geothermal power plant in Russia was built at Pauzhetka,
Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...
, in 1966, with a capacity of 5 MW. The total geothermal installed capacity in 2005 was 79 MW, with 50 MW coming from a plant at Verkhne-Mutnovsky. Russia is currently developing a 100 MW plant at Mutnovsky and a 50 MW plant in
Kaliningrad Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...
. Most geothermal resources are currently used for heating settlements in the
North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...
and
Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...
. Half of the geothermal production is used to heat homes and industrial buildings, one-third is used to heat greenhouses and 13% is used for industrial processes. In October 2010, Sergei Shmatko, Russia's energy minister, stated that Russia and Iceland would work together to develop Kamchatka's geothermal energy sources.


Solar energy

Before 2016 solar energy in Russia was virtually nonexistent, despite its large potential in the country. The first Russian solar plant was opened in
Belgorod Oblast Belgorod Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Belgorod. , the population is 1,540,486. History During the Princely ...
in November 2010. In 2007 it was estimated that Russia had a total theoretical potential of 2,213 TWh/yr for solar energy, with an economically feasible amount of 101 TWh. The southern parts of Russia, especially the North Caucasus, have the greatest potential for solar energy. In 2010 Russia planned to set up an overall solar capacity of 150 MW by 2020. Plans for the construction of a new solar plant on the
Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...
have been announced and the plant is expected to begin operations by 2012. This plant, which will have a capacity of 12.3 MW, is being built by
Rusnano Rusnano Group () is a Russian state-established and funded company. The Rusnano Group's mission is to create competitive nanotechnology-based industry in Russia. Rusnano invests directly and through indirect funds into all major knowledge-based ...
and Renova. Solar Wind LLC and Rusnano are building a plant that will produce double-sided solar panels, which will be able to collect solar energy from both sides. Construction is expected to finish in early 2011 and the plant will have an annual manufacturing capacity of 30 MW. Nitol Solar is the largest Russian company in the area of scientific development and manufacture of products used to generate solar energy. Russia and India are currently discussing the possibility of a joint venture to produce silicon wafers for the creation of
photovoltaic Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commercially ...
cells. An auction in 2013 awarded contracts for 399 MW of solar, and one in 2014 an additional 505 MW. A third auction in 2015 awarded 280 MW of solar. In 2015, the Russian Solar Energy Association predicted that cumulative solar power capacity in the country would rise to 1,500 MW by 2020. Between 2017 and 2019 pv-producing company called «Solar Silicon Technologies» LLC () based in
Podolsk Podolsk ( rus, Подольск, p=pɐˈdolʲsk) is an industrial city, center of Podolsk Urban Okrug, Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Pakhra River (a tributary of the Moskva River). Population: History The first mentions of the vill ...
has produced and built at least 4 solar plants totalling 130MW in power. The company was founded in 2016 and built in place of another plant Podolsk chemical-metallurgical plant () used to produce
monocrystalline silicon Monocrystalline silicon, often referred to as single-crystal silicon or simply mono-Si, is a critical material widely used in modern electronics and photovoltaics. As the foundation for silicon-based discrete components and integrated circuits, ...
since 1957.


Wind energy

Russia has a long history of deploying small-scale wind energy generating systems but has never developed large-scale commercial wind energy production. Most of its current wind energy production is located in agricultural areas with low population densities where connection to the main energy grid is difficult. Russia is estimated to have a total potential of 80,000 TWh/yr for wind energy, 6,218 TWh/yr of which is economically feasible. Most of this potential is found in the southern steppes and the seacoasts of Russia, although in many of these areas the population density is less than . This low population density means that there is little existing electricity infrastructure currently in place, which hinders development of these resources. In 2006, Russia had a total installed wind capacity of 15 MW. Current Russian wind energy projects have a combined capacity of over 1,700 MW. The Russian Wind Energy Association predicts that if Russia achieves its goal of having 4.5% of its energy come from renewable sources by 2020, the country will have a total wind capacity of 7 GW. In 2010, plans for the construction of a wind power plant in Yeisk, on the
Sea of Azov The Sea of Azov is an inland Continental shelf#Shelf seas, shelf sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, and sometimes regarded as a northern extension of the Black Sea. The sea is bounded by Ru ...
, were announced. It is expected to initially have a capacity of 50 MW, which will become 100 MW a year later. The first batch of wind towers and nacelles were delivered in June 2020 and the facility is expected to be operational by the end of 2020. German engineering company
Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...
announced in July 2010, following a visit to Russia by Chancellor
Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is the only woman to have held the office. She was Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and Leade ...
, that it would build wind power plants in Russia. By 2015, the company hopes to install 1,250 MW of capacity in Russia.


Tidal energy

Russia has many tidal energy resources at its disposal, although they are currently underdeveloped as well. The
Kola Bay Kola Bay () or Murmansk Fjord is a 57-km-long fjord of the Barents Sea that cuts into the northern part of the Kola Peninsula. It is up to 7 km wide and has a depth of 200 to 300 metres. The Tuloma, Rosta and Kola Rivers discharge into ...
and
Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk; Historically also known as , or as ; ) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It is located between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, Japan's island of Hokkaido on the sou ...
alone could produce 100 GW with tidal power stations, and the national energy potential from tidal energy can compete with current total energy production. The currently active Kislaya Guba Tidal Power Station is the largest tidal power facility in Russia and has the fourth largest capacity (1.7 MW) among the world's tidal power plants. Plans for constructing an 800 MW tidal power plant in the
Barents Sea The Barents Sea ( , also ; , ; ) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territorial waters.World Wildlife Fund, 2008. It was known earlier among Russi ...
were announced in 2008. Possible long-term projects include the Penzhin Tidal Power Plant, which could become the largest power station in the world, with an installed capacity of up to 87  GW and an annual production of 200 
TWh TWH or twh could refer to: * Tai Dón language, a language of Vietnam, Laos, and China * Tai Wo Hau station, Hong Kong; MTR station code * Tennessee Walking Horse, a breed of horse * Toronto Western Hospital, a hospital in Toronto, Canada * Tun ...
.


Biofuel

Russia's
biofuel Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from Biomass (energy), biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels such as oil. Biofuel can be produced from plants or from agricu ...
industry is new, but it has been developing rapidly in recent years. Russia is one of the largest grain producers, has a well-developed
ethyl alcohol Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is an alcohol, with its formula also written as , or EtOH, where Et is the pseudoelement symbol ...
industry and has increasing
rapeseed Rapeseed (''Brassica napus'' subsp. ''napus''), also known as rape and oilseed rape and canola, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturall ...
(often used to create
biodiesel Biodiesel is a renewable biofuel, a form of diesel fuel, derived from biological sources like vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled greases, and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made from fats. The roots of bi ...
) production rates. The Russian government declared in 2008 that it would play an active role in developing the biofuel industry by building 30 new biofuel plants and providing tax breaks and subsidized interest rates to biofuel energy projects. Although these plans were delayed, on 13 September 2010, Medvedev announced that construction would begin in early 2011.
Biobutanol image:Butanol_flat_structure.png, Butanol, a C-4 hydrocarbon is a promising bio-derived fuel, which shares many properties with gasoline. Butanol may be used as a fuel in an internal combustion engine. It is more similar to gasoline than it is to ...
, the biofuel produced by these plants, would be produced from
timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...
by-products, such as
woodchips Woodchips are small- to medium-sized pieces of wood formed by cutting or chipping larger pieces of wood such as trees, branches, logging residues, Tree stump, stumps, roots, and wood waste. Woodchips may be used as a biomass solid fuel and are r ...
and
sawdust Sawdust (or wood dust) is a by-product or waste product of woodworking operations such as sawing, sanding, milling and routing. It is composed of very small chips of wood. These operations can be performed by woodworking machinery, portable p ...
.
Lada LadaAccording to various sources, the name Lada is derived from a Russian word for Viking longships (). (, , marketed as LADAFrom 2004 onwards Lada is marketed worldwide, including in Russia, using the all-capitals brand name written in Latin sc ...
, a Russian car manufacturer, produced its first biofuel-powered automobile in November 2010. Deputy Transportation Minister Valery Okulov stated that Russian companies are currently developing helicopters that run on biofuel. The country's Biotechnology Corporation estimates that Russia is capable of exporting of biofuel annually.


Biomass

Biomass Biomass is a term used in several contexts: in the context of ecology it means living organisms, and in the context of bioenergy it means matter from recently living (but now dead) organisms. In the latter context, there are variations in how ...
is already used in some parts of Russia to provide a total of 1%, or 9 TWh/year, of Russia's total energy. However, due to Russia's vast forest and
peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...
reserves,
Peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...
is not universally recognized as renewable
biomass Biomass is a term used in several contexts: in the context of ecology it means living organisms, and in the context of bioenergy it means matter from recently living (but now dead) organisms. In the latter context, there are variations in how ...
resource, due to its long regeneration period.
it has a total biomass technical potential of 431 TWh/year, of which 285 TWh/year is economically feasible. Most of this potential is found in northwestern Russia, which has a developed pulp and
paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...
industry that can provide wood-based waste to use as biomass energy. Use of peat for energy production was prominent during the Soviet Union, with the peak occurring in 1965 and declining from that point. In 1929, over 40% of the Soviet Union's electric energy came from peat, which dropped to 1% by 1980. Currently, Russia is responsible for 17% of the world's peat production, and 20% of the peat that it produces, , is used for energy purposes. Shatura Power Station in
Moscow Oblast Moscow Oblast (, , informally known as , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). With a population of 8,524,665 (Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census) living in an area of , it is one of the most densely populate ...
and Kirov Power Station in
Kirov Oblast Kirov Oblast ( rus, Кировская область, p=ˈkʲirəfskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast) located in Eastern Europe. Its administrative center is the city of Kirov. As of the 2010 census, the population ...
are the two largest peat power stations in the world.


See also

* Climate change in Russia *
Coal in Russia Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is a type of ...
* Oil in Russia * Gas in Russia *
Nuclear power in Russia Russia is one of the world's Nuclear power by country#Overview, largest producers of nuclear energy. In 2020 total electricity generated in nuclear power plants in Russia was 215.746 terawatt-hour, TWh, 20.28% of all electric power plant genera ...
*
Energy policy of Russia Russia's energy policy is presented in the government's ''Energy Strategy'' document, first approved in 2000, which sets out the government's policy to 2020 (later extended to 2030). The Energy Strategy outlines several key priorities: increase ...
* Geothermal power in Russia * Wind power in Russia * List of power stations in Russia *
Renewable energy by country This is a list of renewable energy topics by country and territory. These links can be used to compare developments in renewable energy in different countries and territories and to help and encourage new writers to participate in writing about ...


Notes


References

{{Economy of Russia