The Transition of the World‘s Largest Economies to Carbon Neutrality: Areas of Potential Cooperation with Russia

Abstract

In 2020, despite the global economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear that decarbonization and energy transition had become strategic goals rather than market trends. Moreover, they have become part of the broader and more ambitious plans of the world’s largest economies to move toward carbon neutrality by the middle of the 21st century. These economies include the European Union, the U.S., China, Japan and Korea. In Russia, these trends are typically viewed through the prism of risk: carbon neutrality implies a dramatic decrease in demand for fossil fuels, the production and export of which still play a key role in the Russian economy. However, apart from the risk to traditional sources of income, the global transition to carbon neutrality creates new opportunities for the development and diversification of the Russian economy, as well as for international cooperation in new areas. This article is devoted to the general identification of such opportunities. The authors perform a content analysis of the official plans of the largest economies related to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050–60. The main areas in which actions will be taken are identified. The current state of the corresponding industries in Russia and the possibilities for improvement are investigated. On the basis of this analysis, promising directions for the development of the Russian economy are proposed in which the implementation of large-scale international economic cooperation is possible in the coming decades.