Renewable energy in Russia
Encyclopedia
Renewable energy
in Russia
mainly consists of hydroelectric energy. The country is the fifth largest producer of renewable energy in the world, although it is 56th when hydroelectric energy is not taken into account. Some 179 TWh of Russia's energy production comes from renewable energy sources, out of a total economically feasible potential of 1823 TWh. 16% of Russia
's electricity
is generated from hydropower
, and less than 1% is generated from all other renewable energy
sources combined. Roughly 68% of Russia's electricity is generated from thermal power and 16% from nuclear power
.
While most of the large hydropower plants in Russia date from the Soviet era, the abundance of fossil fuel
s in the Soviet Union
and the Russian Federation has resulted in little need for the development of other renewable energy sources. There are currently plans to develop all types of renewable energy, which is strongly encouraged by the Russian government. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
has called for renewable energy to have a larger share of Russia's energy output, and has taken steps to promote the development of renewable energy in Russia since 2008.
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
prevented those goals from being fulfilled.
The construction of the large dams prominent in Soviet times largely ended in the 1990s with the creation of the Russian Federation. In addition, due to the post-Soviet recession, much of the country's infrastructure, including dams, fell into disrepair. 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 rapid development of new renewable energy sources.
, natural gas
and coal
. The country's focus on those resources for production and export, which constitute 80% of foreign trade earnings, means it has paid little attention to renewable energy. Out of the 203 GW of electric generation capacity that Russia has, 44 GW comes from hydroelectricity, 307 MW from geothermal, 15 MW from wind
and negligible amounts from other renewable sources. In 2009, the Russian energy industry generated a total 992 TWh of electricity, 176 TWh of which was produced by hydroelectric power stations. Some of Russia's hydroelectric power plants are outdated and are in need of additional investment, as shown by the accident at the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP
in 2009.
President Dmitry Medvedev
announced in May 2010 that the Russian government would strongly consider purchasing electricity generated from renewable energy sources in an attempt to encourage development of renewable energy. The government has plans for 4.5% of Russia's energy output to come from non-hydroelectric renewable energy sources. Additionally, in November 2010, the government approved a US$300 billion program to make factories and buildings more energy efficient
; it also announced plans to construct eight energy-efficient lamp production plants, promote recycling
and support the construction of a hybrid car
plant. Medvedev announced in late 2009 that he wanted to cut Russian energy consumption by 40% by 2020. At the moment, development is slowed by low investment, economic instability, low public demand and low tariffs on heat and electricity. Subsidies for natural gas are another obstacle to renewable energy development.
sources in Russia was 45,700 MW, and an additional 5,648 MW was under construction. The World Energy Council
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 (6,000 MW); the Bratsk Dam (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
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. The West Siberian Generating Company has plans to start construction of eight mini-hydroelectric power plants in the Altai region before 2015.
, 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
. Most geothermal resources are currently used for heating settlements in the North Caucasus
and Kamchatka
. 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. Russia is also investigating foreign investment possibilities for developing geothermal energy in the Kuril Islands
.
in November 2010. Russia has 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. Russia plans 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
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
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
cells.
In 2010, plans for the construction of a wind power plant in Yeisk, on the Sea of Azov
, were announced. It is expected to initially have a capacity of 50 MW, which will become 100 MW a year later. German engineering company Siemens
announced in July 2010, following a visit to Russia by Chancellor Angela Merkel
, that it would build wind power plants in Russia. By 2015, the company hopes to install 1,250 MW of capacity in Russia.
Russia has many tidal energy resources at its disposal, although they are currently underdeveloped as well. The Kola Bay
and Sea of Okhotsk
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
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
.
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
industry and has increasing rapeseed (often used to create biodiesel
) 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
, the biofuel produced by these plants, would be produced from timber
by-products, such as woodchips
and sawdust
.
Lada
, 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. Russia hopes to export biofuel to the European Union
; the country's Biotechnology Corporation estimates that Russia is capable of exporting of biofuel annually.
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
reserves,Peat
is not universally recognized as renewable
biomass
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
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
and Kirov Power Station in Kirov Oblast
are the two largest peat power stations in the world.
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
mainly consists of hydroelectric energy. The country is the fifth largest producer of renewable energy in the world, although it is 56th when hydroelectric energy is not taken into account. Some 179 TWh of Russia's energy production comes from renewable energy sources, out of a total economically feasible potential of 1823 TWh. 16% of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
's electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
is generated from hydropower
Hydropower
Hydropower, hydraulic power, hydrokinetic power or water power is power that is derived from the force or energy of falling water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Since ancient times, hydropower has been used for irrigation and the operation of various mechanical devices, such as...
, and less than 1% is generated from all other renewable energy
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
sources combined. Roughly 68% of Russia's electricity is generated from thermal power and 16% from nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
.
While most of the large hydropower plants in Russia date from the Soviet era, the abundance of fossil fuel
Fossil fuel
Fossil fuels are fuels formed by natural processes such as anaerobic decomposition of buried dead organisms. The age of the organisms and their resulting fossil fuels is typically millions of years, and sometimes exceeds 650 million years...
s in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and the Russian Federation has resulted in little need for the development of other renewable energy sources. There are currently plans to develop all types of renewable energy, which is strongly encouraged by the Russian government. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
has called for renewable energy to have a larger share of Russia's energy output, and has taken steps to promote the development of renewable energy in Russia since 2008.
History
Most sources of renewable energy are new to Russia and have experienced development in recent years. However, 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 UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
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
Energy policy of the Soviet Union
Energy policy of the Soviet Union was an important feature of Soviet planning from Lenin on. The Soviet Union was virtually a self-sufficient energy nation; the development of the energy sector started with Stalin's autarky policy. During the country's 70 years of existence, the primary way of...
focused on nuclear and thermal power, although renewable energy was not completely neglected. The dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
prevented those goals from being fulfilled.
The construction of the large dams prominent in Soviet times largely ended in the 1990s with the creation of the Russian Federation. In addition, due to the post-Soviet recession, much of the country's infrastructure, including dams, fell into disrepair. 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 rapid development of new renewable energy sources.
Current status
Russia is one of the world's largest producers of energy, most of which it obtains from oilPetroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
, natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
and coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
. The country's focus on those resources for production and export, which constitute 80% of foreign trade earnings, means it has paid little attention to renewable energy. Out of the 203 GW of electric generation capacity that Russia has, 44 GW comes from hydroelectricity, 307 MW from geothermal, 15 MW from wind
Wind power
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
and negligible amounts from other renewable sources. In 2009, the Russian energy industry generated a total 992 TWh of electricity, 176 TWh of which was produced by hydroelectric power stations. Some of Russia's hydroelectric power plants are outdated and are in need of additional investment, as shown by the accident at the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP
2009 Sayano-Shushenskaya hydro accident
The 2009 Sayano–Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station accident occurred at 00:13 GMT on 17 August 2009, when turbine 2 of the Sayano–Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station broke apart violently...
in 2009.
President Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
announced in May 2010 that the Russian government would strongly consider purchasing electricity generated from renewable energy sources in an attempt to encourage development of renewable energy. The government has plans for 4.5% of Russia's energy output to come from non-hydroelectric renewable energy sources. Additionally, in November 2010, the government approved a US$300 billion program to make factories and buildings more energy efficient
Efficient energy use
Efficient energy use, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the goal of efforts to reduce the amount of energy required to provide products and services. For example, insulating a home allows a building to use less heating and cooling energy to achieve and maintain a comfortable temperature...
; it also announced plans to construct eight energy-efficient lamp production plants, promote recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
and support the construction of a hybrid car
Hybrid electric vehicle
A hybrid electric vehicle is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional...
plant. Medvedev announced in late 2009 that he wanted to cut Russian energy consumption by 40% by 2020. At the moment, development is slowed by low investment, economic instability, low public demand and low tariffs on heat and electricity. Subsidies for natural gas are another obstacle to renewable energy development.
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 hydroelectricHydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
sources in Russia was 45,700 MW, and an additional 5,648 MW was under construction. The World Energy Council
World Energy Council
The World Energy Council is a global and inclusive 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'....
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 (6,000 MW); the Bratsk Dam (4,500 MW); the Ust-Ilimsk Dam
Ust-Ilimsk Hydroelectric Power Station
The Ust-Ilimsk Hydroelectric Power Station is a concrete gravity dam on the Angara River and adjacent hydroelectric power station. It is located near Ust-Ilimsk, Irkutsk Oblast in Russia and is the third and last dam on the Angara cascades...
(4,320 MW) and the Zeya Dam
Zeya Dam
The Zeya Hydroelectric Power Station is a concrete gravity dam on the Zeya River. Located in Zeya, Amur Oblast, Russia. Annually the station produces 4.91 TWh...
(1,330 MW). Some of the most recent dam projects are the Bureya Dam
Bureya Dam
The Bureya Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Bureya River in the Russian Far East.-History:Bureya hydroelectric power station was built by Bureyagesstroy. Construction started in 1976, but was halted until 1999. In 1999, RAO UES restarted the project. The dam was completed and the first unit...
(2010 MW) and the Irganai Dam
Irganai Dam
Irganai Dam is a hydroelectric dam in the Untskul region of Dagestan, Russia. It is located on the river Avar Koisu.-History:Construction of the dam and power station started in 1977. The first generation unit of the Irganai hydropower station was launched in 1998. The second generation unit was...
(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
RusHydro , previously known as Hydro-OGK, is a Russian hydroelectricity company. As of 2008 it has a capacity of 25 gigawatts. It is the world's second-largest hydroelectric power producer and is the country's largest power-generating company and the largest successor to RAO UES...
is the largest hydroelectric company in Russia and the second largest hydroelectric producer in the world. In October 2010, China Yangtze Power
China Yangtze Power
China Yangtze Power is a Chinese utilities company, headquartered in Beijing. The company is listed on the SSE 50 Index on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. A controlling share is held by the parent company China Three Gorges Corporation , a Central Enterprise under SASAC.The enterprise produces and...
, 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. The West Siberian Generating Company has plans to start construction of eight mini-hydroelectric power plants in the Altai region before 2015.
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, KamchatkaKamchatka Peninsula
The Kamchatka Peninsula is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of . It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Okhotsk to the west...
, 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
Kaliningrad is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea...
. Most geothermal resources are currently used for heating settlements in the North Caucasus
North Caucasus
The North Caucasus is the northern part of the Caucasus region between the Black and Caspian Seas and within European Russia. The term is also used as a synonym for the North Caucasus economic region of Russia....
and Kamchatka
Kamchatka Peninsula
The Kamchatka Peninsula is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of . It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Okhotsk to the west...
. 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
Sergei Shmatko
Sergei Ivanovich Shmatkó is a Russian businessman and politician specializing in the energy industry. Since May 2008, he is the Minister of Energy.-Early life:Shmatko was born in Stavropol...
, Russia's energy minister, stated that Russia and Iceland would work together to develop Kamchatka's geothermal energy sources. Russia is also investigating foreign investment possibilities for developing geothermal energy in the Kuril Islands
Kuril Islands
The Kuril Islands , in Russia's Sakhalin Oblast region, form a volcanic archipelago that stretches approximately northeast from Hokkaidō, Japan, to Kamchatka, Russia, separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the North Pacific Ocean. There are 56 islands and many more minor rocks. It consists of Greater...
.
Solar energy
Solar energy is virtually nonexistent in Russia, despite its large potential in the country. The first Russian solar plant was opened in Belgorod OblastBelgorod Oblast
Belgorod Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Belgorod. Population: 1,532,670 .-History:...
in November 2010. Russia has 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. Russia plans 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
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
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
Russian Nanotechnology Corporation
Rusnano is a joint-stock company created and owned by the government of Russia and aimed at commercializing developments in nanotechnology...
and Renova
Renova Group
Renova Group is a large Russian conglomerate with interests in aluminium, oil, energy, telecoms and a variety of other sectors. The main owner and president is Viktor Vekselberg....
. 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
Nitol Solar
Nitol Solar is an international, vertically integrated company originating from Russia whose main business activities are scientific development and manufacture of products used to generate solar energy.They were valued at $1bn in Jan 2008...
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
Wafer (electronics)
A wafer is a thin slice of semiconductor material, such as a silicon crystal, used in the fabrication of integrated circuits and other microdevices...
for the creation of photovoltaic
Photovoltaics
Photovoltaics is a method of generating electrical power by converting solar radiation into direct current electricity using semiconductors that exhibit the photovoltaic effect. Photovoltaic power generation employs solar panels composed of a number of solar cells containing a photovoltaic material...
cells.
Wind energy
Russia has a long history of small-scale wind energy use but has never developed large-scale commercial wind energy production. Most of its current wind 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
Sea of Azov
The Sea of Azov , known in Classical Antiquity as Lake Maeotis, is a sea on the south of Eastern Europe. It is linked by the narrow Strait of Kerch to the Black Sea to the south and is bounded on the north by Ukraine mainland, on the east by Russia, and on the west by the Ukraine's Crimean...
, were announced. It is expected to initially have a capacity of 50 MW, which will become 100 MW a year later. German engineering company Siemens
Siemens
Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...
announced in July 2010, following a visit to Russia by Chancellor Angela Merkel
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000, and chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary coalition from 2002 to 2005.From 2005 to 2009 she led a...
, 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
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 and Kola Rivers discharge into the bay....
and Sea of Okhotsk
Sea of Okhotsk
The Sea of Okhotsk is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, lying between the Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, the island of Hokkaidō to the far south, the island of Sakhalin along the west, and a long stretch of eastern Siberian coast along the west and...
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
Kislaya Guba Tidal Power Station
The Kislaya Guba Tidal Power Station is an experimental project in Kislaya Guba, Russia.The station is the world's 4th largest tidal power plant with the output capacity of 1.7 MW. Construction on the project began in 1968, but was later suspended for 10 years until December 2004, when...
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
Barents Sea
The Barents Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located north of Norway and Russia. Known in the Middle Ages as the Murman Sea, the sea takes its current name from the Dutch navigator Willem Barents...
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
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
and an annual production of 200 TWh
Watt-hour
The kilowatt hour, or kilowatt-hour, is a unit of energy equal to 1000 watt hours or 3.6 megajoules.For constant power, energy in watt hours is the product of power in watts and time in hours...
.
Biofuel
Russia's biofuelBiofuel
Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
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
Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...
industry and has increasing rapeseed (often used to create biodiesel
Biodiesel
Biodiesel refers to a vegetable oil- or animal fat-based diesel fuel consisting of long-chain alkyl esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids with an alcohol....
) 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
Butanol fuel
Butanol may be used as a fuel in an internal combustion engine. Because its longer hydrocarbon chain causes it to be fairly non-polar, it is more similar to gasoline than it is to ethanol...
, the biofuel produced by these plants, would be produced from timber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
by-products, such as woodchips
Woodchips
Woodchips are a medium-sized solid material made by cutting, or chipping, larger pieces of wood. Woodchips may be used as a biomass solid fuel. They may also be used as an organic mulch in gardening, landscaping, restoration ecology and mushroom cultivation...
and sawdust
Sawdust
Sawdust is a by-product of cutting lumber with a saw, composed of fine particles of wood. It can present a hazard in manufacturing industries, especially in terms of its flammability....
.
Lada
Lada
Lada is a trademark of AvtoVAZ, a Russian car manufacturer in Tolyatti, Samara Oblast. All AvtoVAZ vehicles are currently sold under the Lada brand, though this was not always so; Lada was originally AvtoVAZ's export brand for models it sold under the Zhiguli name in the domestic Soviet market...
, 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. Russia hopes to export biofuel to the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
; the country's Biotechnology Corporation estimates that Russia is capable of exporting of biofuel annually.
Biomass
BiomassBiomass
Biomass, as a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms. As an energy source, biomass can either be used directly, or converted into other energy products such as biofuel....
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
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
reserves,Peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
is not universally recognized as renewable
Renewable resource
A renewable resource is a natural resource with the ability of being replaced through biological or other natural processes and replenished with the passage of time...
biomass
Biomass
Biomass, as a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms. As an energy source, biomass can either be used directly, or converted into other energy products such as biofuel....
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
Pulp (paper)
Pulp is a lignocellulosic fibrous material prepared by chemically or mechanically separating cellulose fibres from wood, fibre crops or waste paper. Wood pulp is the most common raw material in papermaking.-History:...
and paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
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
Shatura Power Station
The Shatura Power Station is one of the oldest power stations in Russia. The facility is located in Shatura, Moscow Oblast, and generates power by utilizing two 210 MW units, three 200 MW units, and one 80 MW unit, totalling the installed capacity to 1,100 MW...
in Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...
and Kirov Power Station in Kirov Oblast
Kirov Oblast
Kirov Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Kirov. Population: -History:In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Vyatka remained a place of exile for opponents of the tsarist regime, including many prominent revolutionary figures.In 1920, a number of...
are the two largest peat power stations in the world.
See also
- Energy policy of RussiaEnergy policy of RussiaThe Energy policy of Russia is contained in an Energy Strategy document, which sets out policy for the period up to 2020. In 2000 the Russian government approved the main provisions of the Russian energy strategy to 2020, and in 2003 the new Russian energy strategy was confirmed by the government...
- Nuclear power in RussiaNuclear power in RussiaIn 2010 total electricity generated in nuclear power plants in Russia was 170.1 TWh, 16% of all power generation. The installed capacity of Russian nuclear reactors stood at 21,244 MW....