Power Saving

Until recently, Russia experienced no need to widely implement power saving technologies due to low cost of power. Under the modern conditions in Russia, when electric power shortages are aggravated by wasteful user practices, the problem of power saving is becoming critical.

As can be seen from numerous publications that describe international experience with power saving, the problem can be successfully solved only if addressed holistically, including development and mass production of power saving production equipment and improvement of related operation methods and modes. Even though power costs in Russia are still lower than elsewhere, this difference is gradually leveled as power consumption grows.

By estimates, a number of Russian regions is going to be confronted with power shortages by 2009. A comprehensive power saving program must be implemented to address the problem. Moscow has adopted and implemented the Municipal Target Power Saving Program 672-PP of 28.09.2004 for 2004-2008 and strategically until 2010. As part of the program, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov proposed energy contract to be signed with housing owners as a possible option to solve the power saving problem. ‘We are going to sell electric power, and they are going to save it by using our saving meters’ the capital's Mayor said. According to Luzhkov, power saving lamps can be marketed for the capital’s residential sector.

As estimated by UN experts, mere replacement of incandescent lamps with power saving ones in just one half of the capital’s 2.5 million apartments will save 1000 MW, or exactly as much as Moscow needs to get rid of power shortages.The power saving social awareness program aims to promote power saving behavior. It has the following objectives: draw the citizen's attention to the advantages of power saving, including through use of power saving equipment; make people realize that although the cost of power is currently fairly low, the demand for electric power is expected to grow in future, inevitably resulting in rising power rates. So, wasteful use of electric power may hurt the family budget. Examples of efficient power use are provided.