Economic aspects of prospective use of renewable energy resources by traditional technologies

• Published in: Vestnik of Astrakhan State Technical University. Series: Economics Vol. 2023; no. 1; pp. 13 - 22
• Main Authors: Agafonov, Igor Anatolievich, Chechina, Oksana Sergeevna, Shafranskii, Igor Evgenievich
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 31.03.2023
• ISSN: 2073-5537; 2309-9798
• DOI: 10.24143/2073-5537-2023-1-13-22

The article focuses on the analysis of world electric power production over the past decades, which is marked by the increase in the world total electricity production by more than 4 times in 1937-2019. The shares of electricity production from different sources are analyzed. Hydropower, which uses natural renewable resources and does not generate greenhouse gases and other combustion products, and also has great potential to meet the electricity needs of many countries is given a special position among the electricity generation processes. According to the analysis, hydropower accounts for around 16% of the world’s electricity production. Distribution of shares of hydroelectric power generation by the countries, including Russia, is illustrated. There has been defined a total gross hydro potential of the Russian Federation (about 2,800 billion kWh); Russia ranks second after China in supply of hydropower resources. There is considered a traditional approach for our country to produce electricity at thermal power plants. Decommissioning of hydroelectric power plants is supposed to take a large amount of state budget expenditures. The advantages of hydroelectric power plants and negative consequences of hydropower engineering are given. Distribution of the economic potential of the hydrogenation energy resources of the Russian rivers with the highest dynamics of hydropower development is illustrated, and its application is determined (the RF hydro potential is used rather poorly, its distribution across the country is uneven). The promising application of the hydro potential of the rivers in the North Caucasus has been proved, as well as of building the derivational hydroelectric power plants with artificial channel systems without flooding the territories and resettling the population. The directions of alternative hydropower engineering that use the mechanical energy of tides, currents, waves and thermal energy of the ocean have been considered.