The head of Russia’s Ministry of Energy, Nikolai Shulginov, discussed the country’s electricity trade outlook in a recent interview on Rossiya-24. He indicated that electricity exports are expected to surpass the 2020 level by about 15 percent by year’s end, signaling a notable expansion of Russia’s outbound power supplies. These remarks were reported by TASS and quoted during the interview. [Attribution: TASS]
Shulginov noted that, based on the current trajectory, the annual results should show a roughly 15 percent increase in export volumes compared with 2020. He stressed that the growth is already evident as the year progresses, aligning with the energy ministry’s forecasts. [Attribution: TASS]
In addition to overall export growth, the minister highlighted a stronger push to increase electricity deliveries to neighboring markets. He stated that Russia expects to raise the total amount of electricity exported to Mongolia and China by about 20 percent this year. Within that broader growth, export volumes to China are anticipated to rise by around 16 percent, continuing a trend of expanding energy cooperation with these destinations. [Attribution: TASS]
Conversely, the report also noted a regional shift within Russia’s internal generation patterns. Because of the higher export commitments to external markets, generation in the European part of the country and in the Urals has declined. The trend, observed since the summer of 2022 and attributed to sanctions imposed on Moscow, contributed to a year-over-year drop in electricity production in these western regions. By late 2022, the Kommersant newspaper reported a decline of about 1.2 percent in the European part and the Urals compared with the previous year, with even larger declines within the Northwest Federal District’s energy system. [Attribution: Kommersant]