Power cuts loom in Russia as gas supplies to power stations wane

Source: BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union - Economic Publication date: Apr 11, 2000

Text of report by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS

Moscow, 11th April, ITAR-TASS correspondent Andrey Yarushin: The UES [Unified Energy System] of Russia joint-stock company is obliged to resort to power cuts in view of shortfalls in the supply of gas to federal power stations in a number of Russian towns. In the main, "this will affect debtors", but "there are no plans so far for a return to rotated power cuts", an ITAR-TASS correspondent was told today by Andrey Trapeznikov, head of UES's media liaison department.

He said that "significant restrictions" on electricity supplies would soon be introduced in the power systems of Nizhniy Novgorod, Samara, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Tver, Tula, Volgograd, Rostov, Chuvashia, Orenburg and Sverdlovsk. Instead of the daily total of 36m cubic metres of gas, federal power stations are currently receiving 17m. "In this connection, instead of accumulating reserve types of fuel, as is normal for early April, we are using them up fast," Trapeznikov commented. He explained that, in the first few days of April alone, "an extra 201,000 tonnes of coal, or 2.5 per cent more than planned, and 289,000 t of fuel oil, or 11 per cent more, were burnt" by those power stations. The price of the electricity generated had risen accordingly.

The UES also announced that a hook-up conference had taken place inside the power company on the situation in the industry in connection "with the unprecedented reductions in gas supplies" to federal power stations and the country's energy systems. The biggest cuts in gas supplies, Trapeznikov noted, are being experienced by central Russia, the Volga area, the Urals and southern Russia.

While confirming that "there are no plans so far for a return to rotated power cuts", Trapeznikov explained that "rotated" cuts are being introduced "to restore the balance in the energy system". The plan for using them provides for "the rotated temporary disconnection of virtually all consumers in keeping with the regulations and schedule for power cuts". In accordance with them, the consumer is warned in advance of an impending cut, "with the time and facilities to be subjected to cuts being agreed beforehand with the local administration".

Publication date: Apr 11, 2000 ) 2000, NewsReal, Inc.

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-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), April 11, 2000

Answers

Just a couple of days ago the Gazprom cut was 20%. Now it's 50%. Wow! the energy situation seems to be deteriorating in Russia at a fast clip.

-- JackW (jpayne@webtv.net), April 12, 2000.

We had an early tipoff to this story when, in early Feb., Gazprom announced that it was only able to send one-third of its usual allotment to Europe.

-- Wellesley (wellesley@freeport.net), April 12, 2000.