Digitalization of the Russian Energy Sector: State-of-the-Art and Potential for Future Research

Abstract

In this paper, we review forty seven best papers on digitalization of the Russian fuel and energy complex. All the papers are written in Russian and published in a number of Russian academic journals that are mostly distributed via closed national library systems and, consequently, are not available for foreign scholars interested in studying Russia's energy policies. Our review identifies a total of five research directions in the Russian scholarship:(1) General trends in digitalization of the Russian fuel and energy complex; (2) concepts and approaches used by the Russian scholars; (3) government policies; (4) digital technologies; and (5) security concerns. Each research direction is carefully covered and analyzed. Then, we identify gaps in the Russian scholarship and propose three potential research areas.

Increasing Energy Efficiency and Modernization of Energy Systems in Russia: A Review

“…The Russian energy sector represents an interesting object of study by all available accounts. It is distinguished by the highly centralized nature and dense corporate concentration that quite often defy the usual market processes [23,24]. The Russian energy sector was created in the times of the Soviet Union when the concentration of industry was a part of national 5-year plans for the development of the social economy and centralization was ubiquitous [25,26].…”

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“…For example, problems have been raised related to: higher demand related to digital infrastructure, 'rebound effect' [64] consumption increases, and lifecycle environmental and human welfare costs of mining, manufacture and waste disposal [65][66][67]. Digitalization itself is also as relevant to fossil-fuel industries as it is to the renewables industry [68]. In summary, while energy system digitalization has been accepted as an enabler for energy system decarbonization, the full range of impacts on the environment and society require further attention.…”

The Relationships among Social, Environmental, Economic CSR Practices and Digitalization in Polish Energy Companies

“…It is a continuous process that involves all countries of the world. For this reason, this subject is more and more often undertaken by numerous researchers [101][102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109].…”