Prospects of introducing microgrids in Russian industry

Improving energy efficiency keeps on being one of the most pressing problems for Russian industry. The paper aims to examine the prospects of using microgrids in Russian regions, including in the old industrial ones, to reduce energy costs of industrial enterprises. The methodological basis of the study comprises theoretical aspects of pricing within the models of retail and wholesale energy markets, tenets of uneven demand for energy under the use of microgrids. The authors apply analysis, synthesis, systematisation and statistical observation, create matrices and positioning maps and explore the parameters of energy consumption schedules at industrial enterprises of various types as well as the values of ‘common pot’ electricity transmission tariffs introduced in the subjects of the Russian Federation. The researchers develop own system of indicators for assessing the variability in the cost of electricity transmission services and present a map of Russian regions that illustrate the prospects of using microgrids and mechanisms of demand management in industrially developed regions with a view to cutting energy costs.