Advancing Hydropower: From Plans to Implementation

Russia should realize its hydropower potential, including the construction of new hydroelectric power plants (HPPs), especially in the Far East, where such facilities can mitigate the risk of floods. However, the construction of new large hydropower plants is complicated by the long lead times (about ten years) for such projects, while small HPPs require too much investment. Therefore, it is necessary to develop government tools to support this area. That was the opinion of representatives of federal executive authorities and energy companies at the end of the session ‘Advancing Hydropower: From Plans to Implementation’ held as part of the Russian Energy Week (REW).

KEY CONCLUSIONS

Hydropower development is necessary for Russia, especially in the Far East

“It seems to me that the most important commodity of the new century will be water. Indeed, we have not realized Russia’s hydro potential, but we are trying to catch up. <...> The construction of HPPs in terms of spatial development and socio-economic impact on the whole territory has a large coverage in such areas as agriculture, transport, energy, and navigation,” Pavel Snikkars, Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation.

“At the moment, 20% of our energy balance is made up of hydro power plants. Of course, this share can be increased,” Fedor Opadchy, Chairman of the Board, System Operator of the United Power System.

“Primorye has a large unrealized potential [of hydropower generation, – Ed.], and it must be said that it is not very well researched. But from the point of view of both large and small generation development, it is an excellent place. And most importantly, it is an area where accelerated [development] is underway, where additional electricity is needed,” Oleg Lushnikov, Executive Director, Hydropower of Russia Association of Organizations and Workers of Hydropower.

Hydropower solves a host of problems at once, including flooding and emission reduction

“You know that the climate is changing, and in the Far East this is particularly noticeable. Over the last five years, state of emergency on the federal level has been declared three times – all of this was due to floods. <...> Therefore, we support RusHydro’s plans to build two more power plants. They are very important, including in order to protect the population of the region from floods, which unfortunately have been occurring too often recently,” Vasily Orlov, Governor of Amur Region.

“The hydro potential is there. In addition to the flood control effect, tourism, the use of these waterways for transport, there is the topic of low-carbon agenda. <...> In EN+, we have four very large hydropower plants in Siberia, we put them through a system of measurements according to the methodology of international experts on climate change, and all of them confirmed that carbon footprint is 5 grams per kWh. It is practically carbon-free energy,” Mikhail Khardikov, Operations Director, En+ Group.

PROBLEMS

Lack of government support measures for the hydropower sector

“We are talking about support. The design of facilities is now included in the investment programme. But so far there is no mechanism to support the construction of HPPs. <...> We need instruments like CDA [capacity delivery agreement, – Ed.] for the construction of hydropower facilities,” Roman Berdnikov, First Deputy General Director, Member of the Management Board, RusHydro.

“When we say that we need government solutions, state support programmes and return on investment, we always run into some kind of misunderstanding. But no one is building on the market now: neither thermal generation, nor renewable generation facilities are being built. Everyone builds through CDA [capacity delivery agreement, – Ed.] and special mechanisms,” Mikhail Khardikov, Operations Director, En+ Group.

“We do not have a single power plant built by a private investor – all of them were built with government support measures. <...> There are power plants that have become private, but they were built by government decisions with budget funding, taking into account all effects,” Pavel Snikkars, Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation.

Risk of loss of machine-building potential due to low rates of HPP construction

“The volume of hydropower inputs in Russia has been decreasing recently at catastrophic rates. <...> If we do not build and commission HPPS and generate power in the near future, we will lose our potential, which, unlike other types of equipment, we have,” Vladimir Demyanov, Deputy Director – Head of Hydro Power Division, Power Machines.

“Now we have abandoned the USSR experience in terms of regulatory documents to a critical extent. And there is no new expertise – there is none. We have not been engaged in new construction [of large-capacity facilities, – Ed.] – these were Soviet projects developed long ago,” Alexey Vinogradov, General Director, Nord Hydro – Beliy Porog.

SOLUTIONS

Long-term strategic planning and simultaneous development of small and large hydropower generation

“Markets are more short-term and immediate. No market can give a price signal for 80 years ahead. This is why government involvement is necessary,” Fedor Opadchy, Chairman of the Board, System Operator of the United Power System.

“When we make a 5–7-year-long development plan, when a capacity shortage occurs, we choose not the generation facilities that are the most efficient, but those that we will have time to make within a few years. Therefore, if we switch to long-term planning, we will be able to make decisions on the implementation of efficient generation sources, including HPPs, within the framework of long-term development in places where capacity shortages arise,” Roman Berdnikov, First Deputy General Director, Member of the Management Board, RusHydro.

“Still, small hydropower and big hydropower are not alternatives to each other. They fully complement each other,” Daler Juma, Minister of Energy and Water Resources of the Republic of Tajikistan.

“For some time, the vector was shifted towards small hydropower, and it is indeed developing, increasing its capacity by about 1% every year. At the same time, I must say that large hydropower is developing three times faster. In terms of total capacity, large hydropower accounts for 94% of all hydropower, and according to the International Energy Agency, this trend will continue. Small hydropower plants will develop, but this will not change the situation significantly,” Oleg Lushnikov, Executive Director, Hydropower of Russia Association of Organizations and Workers of Hydropower.

For more information, visit the Roscongress Foundation’s Information and Analytical System at roscongress.org/en.

The Russian Energy Week International Forum is a key global platform for discussing current trends in the development of the modern fuel and energy sector. This event is traditionally held at the highest level, featuring the participation of leaders from the largest companies in the energy industry. In 2022, more than 70 events, with the involvement of over 270 speakers, were held as part of REW. The Forum attracted over 3,000 participants and media representatives from Russia, as well as 83 foreign countries and territories. The Forum is organized by the Roscongress Foundation and the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation, with the support of the Moscow City Government.

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