Introduction

In the chapter, it is argued that energy companies were integral to the development of the Russian state after 1992, due to the institutional legacies of the integrated Soviet economy. One such legacy was an asymmetric energy dependence on Russia in the post-Soviet region, which applied in the gas, oil, electricity and nuclear energy industries. It is discussed how companies and the state interact according to formal and informal rules that complement, but also undermine each other. In a limited access order, privileges in particular matter for the extent to which owners can expect property rights to be protected, and for the state’s ability to exercise oversight and control in relation to state-owned companies. Among Russia’s state-oriented elites, this resulted in a situation where energy companies often became assets in a struggle for power. Companies were important both for their resources, and for their political influence.