CASE STUDY: RUSSIA

The document details Russia's high reliance on fossil fuels, which accounted for 90% of its total energy supply in 2017 and 23.6% of general government revenue. It highlights the dominance of state-owned enterprises like Gazprom and Rosneft, the government's strategy to expand exports to the Asia-Pacific region, and the significant fiscal gap created by the under-taxation of fossil fuel consumption. The report also examines various forms of production and consumption subsidies, as well as the role of the National Welfare Fund in managing windfall revenues.

• Russia possesses vast fossil fuel reserves that far exceed current global energy emissions; in 2018, its proved reserves for gas, oil, and coal were 20%, 6%, and 15% of the global totals, respectively, totaling 428 GtCO2.
• The Russian economy is heavily dependent on fossil fuels, with 90% of the total energy supply coming from these sources in 2017. Fossil fuels contributed between 10% and 25% of the GDP, and accounted for over 60% of export value in 2018.
• Government finances are deeply tied to the fossil fuel sector, with taxes and fees on production and consumption generating 23.6% of general government revenue in 2017. Specifically, the mineral extraction tax (MET) and export duties were reported as 40% and 46% of the federal budget in 2017 and 2018, respectively.
• State-owned enterprises (SOEs) dominate the oil and gas sectors, with Gazprom accounting for 68% of gas output and Rosneft and other SOEs producing more than half of the oil, exposing the government to risks of stranded assets.
• Russia's energy policy focuses on maintaining global market shares by continuing trade with Europe and expanding exports to the Asia-Pacific region, particularly China, which requires developing high-cost reserves in the Arctic, Far East, and Eastern Siberia.
• There is a significant fiscal loss due to the under-taxation of fossil fuel consumption; the IMF estimated this at USD 74 billion for climate change effects and USD 422 billion for air pollution impacts in 2017.
• The government provides substantial subsidies to fossil fuels. OECD estimates for direct transfers and tax expenditures are 0.5% of GDP (1.5% of general government revenue), while IEA estimates for regulated consumer prices are 1.3% of GDP (3.9% of general government revenue).
• Russia's climate commitment under the Paris Agreement is to limit anthropogenic GHG emissions to 7075% of 1990 levels by 2030, a target that potentially allows for emissions increases above 2017 levels.

APA

Gerasimchuk, I., & Oharenko, Y. (2019). CASE STUDY: RUSSIA. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/beyond-fossil-fuels-russia.pdf

Chicago

Gerasimchuk, Ivetta, and Yuliia Oharenko. CASE STUDY: RUSSIA. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2019. https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/beyond-fossil-fuels-russia.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gerasimchuk |first1=Ivetta |last2=Oharenko |first2=Yuliia |title=CASE STUDY: RUSSIA |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=November 2019 |url=https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/beyond-fossil-fuels-russia.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gerasimchuk2019case, author = {Gerasimchuk, Ivetta and Oharenko, Yuliia}, title = {{CASE STUDY: RUSSIA}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2019}, month = nov, url = {https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/beyond-fossil-fuels-russia.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }