Forming a strategic vision: the future of the United Energy System of Russia

The Corporate Centre of RAO UES of Russia contracted Investorium to form a strategic vision of how Russia's energy industry will evolve up to the year 2035. The vision was expected to reflect the trends in the energy industry of the world's most industrially developed economies and to contain suggestions as to how Russia's United Energy System could be reformed. It was Investorium's responsibility to review the United Energy System key sectors (combined heat and power generation, hydro-powered generation and power supply and distribution), consider the option of bringing private investors into the competitive sectors (non-nuclear electricity generation and power supply/distribution to end users) alongside with the preservation of the state control over the monopolistic sectors (nuclear power generation, energy transmission and grid infrastructure).

Investorium reviewed the energy industry reforms in the world's leading economies, including the US, Great Britain, the European Community and Australia, with the view to identifying and studying best practices and, once they were adjusted to meet the local requirements, using them for the purpose of reforming Russia's energy industry. The project required the participation of separate divisions of RAO UES of Russia(combined heat and power generation), RosAtom (nuclear power generation), RusHydro (hydro-electric power generation), and outside contractors including McKinsey, the world's leading strategy consultant.

One of the challenges of the project was making a mid-term energy consumption forecast for each key sector of the economy for each Federal region of Russia. In particular, the Investorium team projected energy consumption in the North West Federal region up until the year 2030 by analyzing the current and future energy needs of about 200 regional industrial enterprises. Also, the team supervised the work of the external contractors and the preparation of the project Data Room and reports submitted to the Top management of RAO UES of Russia.

The result of the project was a report featuring a strategic vision of how Russia's heat and energy industry will develop up to the year 2030. The project Knowledge Base served as a comprehensive tool for reforming the industry and reorganizing some of its sectors, including that of power generation and distribution, and served a basis for mid-term projections of heat and power consumption in the Federal regions of Russia and their energy systems.