ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how Russia's energy consumption patterns, and by extension, CO 2 emissions, have changed over the past decade. Russia's total energy consumption has risen steadily over the past decade. However, the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates the share of oil and gas in Russia's gross domestic product at approximately 20%, and suggests that it could even be higher. Russia's significance as a carbon-producing country derives from its status as a world-leading energy producer: in 2014, Russia ranked second for oil and gas production, sixth for coal production, third for nuclear power production, fourth for hydroelectricity generation, and fourth for electricity generation overall. The stability of Russia's primary energy mix, lack of investment in renewables other than large-scale hydroelectricity, and sheer size of the challenge of improving Russia's energy efficiency, means that an energy "transition" in Russia is not expected in the medium-term future.
