Energy Future of the Russian Far East: Low-Carbon Development Potential

Abstract

The paper discusses the current and future-oriented models of development of the energy sector of the Russian Far East. We demonstrate that the current model is aimed at maximizing the external rent and resource rent, and it is characterized by a low priority of the environmental policy and, in fact, ignores the global trend of the energy transition. We assess the risks of sticking to the current model and "no action taken" development of the energy sector. We review institutional conditions and identify barriers to the development of low- and zero-carbon technologies in the current model. The future-oriented model aims to preserve the advantages of the current model and complement it with high-tech production facilities in the energy sector along with the transformation of the economy and energy in line with the energy transition trends. Hydrogen technologies and renewable energy are currently the two main distinct groups of technologies that are part of the future-oriented model. By focusing on the former, we analyze the conditions for the development of hydrogen technologies as applied to the subjects of the Far Eastern Federal District and identify competitive advantages and limiting factors.