Putin plans new energy approaches

In his annual state of the nation address, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia needs “new integrated approaches” to the development of the energy sector, including nuclear power generation and hydrogen.

Putin told representatives of the Russian government and both chambers of parliament that Russia would respond to “climate change challenges” by “adapting its agriculture, industry, housing sector, and infrastructure to them.” It must also “build a new industry for the utilization of carbon emissions, ensure [emissions] reduction, and implement strict control and monitoring.”

While officials have recently stated that Moscow plans to play a role in the transition to a low-carbon energy system, Russia’s energy sector remains dominated by hydrocarbons. Russia aims to use its fossil fuel capital and nuclear technologies to become a “global leader in hydrogen development and exports” by 2035, according to Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak.

Russia wants to develop nuclear-powered technologies to produce hydrogen from natural gas, as well as other low-carbon hydrogen production methods. Russia is aiming for a 20-25 percent share of global hydrogen trade by 2035, according to Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin. In recent weeks and months, Rosneft, Lukoil, and Gazprom have all confirmed that they are assessing the feasibility of hydrogen projects.