Putin urges new energy approaches

Russia needs "new integrated approaches" to the development of the energy sector including nuclear power generation and hydrogen, Russian president Vladimir Putin said in his annual state of the nation address today.

Addressing members of the government and both chambers of the Russian parliament, Putin said that Russia needs to respond to "the challenges of climate change" and "adapt its agriculture, industry, housing sector and infrastructure to them". It also needs to "create a new industry for carbon emissions utilisation, ensure [emissions] reduction and introduce tough control and monitoring".

Russia's energy sector remains dominated by hydrocarbons, although officials have recently been saying that Moscow intends to play its part in the transition to a low-carbon energy system. Deputy prime minister Alexander Novak said in December that Russia plans to use its fossil fuel resources and nuclear technology to become a "world leader in production and exports of hydrogen" by 2035.

Russia aims to develop technology to produce hydrogen from natural gas using nuclear energy and to develop other low-carbon methods of hydrogen production. Deputy energy minister Pavel Sorokin said earlier this month that Russia is eyeing a 20-25pc share of global hydrogen trading by 2035. Rosneft, Lukoil and Gazprom have all said in recent weeks and months that they are evaluating the viability of hydrogen projects.

Most of Russia's leading oil and gas firms have already committed to emissions reductions, while the country's fifth-largest crude producer Tatneft has committed to carbon neutrality by 2050, following the lead of a number of big international firms. At the same time, Russian oil companies still plan to increase oil production once Opec+ deal restrictions on crude output are lifted.

The Russian parliament has approved a bill that requires major emitters to report their greenhouse gas emissions. But the legislation does not envisage any measures to ensure reduction.

By Oksana Yablokova