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General information – Energy Country Profile

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General Country Information - Energy Administration

  • Area: 207.600 km²
  • Arable land: 55.597 km²
  • Permanent crops: 1.189 km²
  • Population: 9.504.700  as of January 2016
  • GDP (purchasing power parity):  US$165.4 billion (2016 est.)
  • GDP per capita (PPP):  US$17,500 (2016 est.)
  • GDP composition per sector:
    • agriculture  9,2%
    • industry 40,9%
    • services 49,8%

Sources:

Public Administration

  • Country name: Republic of Belarus
  • Capital: Minsk
  • Administrative divisions: 6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts) and 1 municipality (horad); Brest, Homyel (Gomel), Horad Minsk (Minsk City), Hrodna (Grodno), Mahilyow (Mogilev), Minsk, Vitsyebsk (Vitebsk)
  • Administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers; Russian spelling provided for reference when different from Belarusian

Energy Administrations and Institutions

Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Belarus governs the energy supply sector that is a state monopoly. The objective of the Ministry is to provide relevant regulations and main energy policy guidelines and monitor their implementation in order to rehabilitate and further develop the overall energy supply system, taking into account energy efficiency, environmental protection and security of supply. The sector includes a hierarchy of vertically integrated enterprises. “Beltopgas” State Production Association under the Ministry of Energy incorporates seven distribution companies (RUEs), which supply gas to Minsk and six provinces of Belarus.  “Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant” RUE under the Ministry of Energy is responsible for construction of two nuclear power units, operation of the power plant, waste management, power plant decommissioning and nuclear waste disposal. “BelEnergo” State Production Association of Power Industry (“BelEnergo” SPA) under the Ministry of Energy operates the economic activity of the Belarusian power system, including generation, transmission, distribution and sale of heat and electricity, operational dispatch management, maintenance of power plants, power and heat supply networks and organization of activities for the purposes of energy system development (demand forecasting, investments, rehabilitation, construction, etc.). There are six power supply companies (Republican Unitary Enterprises, RUE) providing heat and electricity to six regions (oblasts): “BrestEnergo” RUE, “VitebskEnergo” RUE, “GomelEnergo” RUE, “GrodnoEnergo” RUE, “MinskEnergo” RUE and “MogilevEnergo” RUE. These companies are managed by “BelEnergo” SPA.

There are a number of other companies under the “BelEnergo” SPA, e.g., “ODU” RUE (an energy mix operation dispatcher), “BelTEI” Research & Design RUE, “BelEnergoStroi” RUE, “BelNIPIEnergoProm” RUE, BelEnergoSetProjekt” RUE, etc. (research, design, production and assembly companies).

Department of Energy Efficiency (formerly the Energy Conservation Control Committee of the Council of Ministers) is a principal state authority responsible for energy efficiency improvement policy and renewable energy developments in the country. The Department operates in the body of the State Committee for Standardization of the Republic of Belarus and therefore is assigned also to perform supervisory functions. It monitors the respective policy implementation and provides for state control of rational use of fuel, electricity and heat. The Department prepares special assignments (targets, indicators and projects) under the national energy efficiency and renewable energy programmes for their further approval by the Council of Ministers and then performs the monitoring of assignments and target indicators, checks performance indicators reported by responsible subdivisions and units in ministries, departments, executive committees (in oblasts, districts and cities) and enterprises, and further reports the results to the Council of Ministers. The Department of Energy Efficiency includes several administrations for supervising the rational use of fuel and energy resources in the provinces (Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno, Minsk, and Mogilev) and the city of Minsk for the purposes of the organization and control of energy efficiency and renewable energy related activities on behalf of the Department and executive committees in the provinces, districts and cities within the framework of territorial regulation.

Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Belarus through its Main Department for Fuel and Energy Complex, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industries is a coordinator of other ministries’ activities related to the implementation of all energy efficiency and renewable energy state programmes and projects. The Ministry together with the Department of Energy Efficiency is responsible to the government and the president of the Republic of Belarus for activities in the area of energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus is a national state administration body in charge of exploitation of natural resources and environmental protection, pursuing the state environmental policy. The Ministry is a Focal Pont for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, and thus has a special competence of development and implementation of national policy in climate change, both in mitigation and adaptation. It is authorized to develop and implement national climate change programmes and coordinate relevant activities of other governmental agencies, local executive and regulatory bodies, and organizations. One of other priorities of the Ministry is promotion and introduction of eco-friendly renewable energy sources (RES), such as biogas, phytomass, solar, wind and hydro energy. The Ministry is responsible for the State Inventory (Cadaster) of Renewable Energy Sources that was created as a part of the National Automated Information System. Pursuant to provisions of the Resolution of the Council of Ministers No.836 of June 24, 2011, the State Inventory contains information as follows: appropriate sites for possible allocation of RES with installed capacity of more than 200 kW; actual sites where RES are installed coupled with information about energy producers, types of RES, installed capacity and respective annual heat and electricity production.

Ministry of Housing and Communal Services of the Republic of Belarus is authorized to develop and implement national housing and communal sector development programmes and coordinate relevant activities of other governmental agencies, local executive and regulatory bodies, and organizations. Specifically, the Ministry is responsible for development and implementation of national policy in communal waste management and sewage water treatment fields as well as in energy effective heat and power consumption in residential sector.

National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus is assigned for development and implementation of national policy in the field of statistics. It is responsible inter alia in collection of statistical data for energy generation, supply and consumption as well as for GHG inventories.

Power Engineering Institute is a research institution under the Belarus National Academy of Sciences that conducts studies in the fields of power engineering, RES, elaborates strategies for sustainable power industry development and energy security, develops energy efficient technologies and equipment, etc. It is also involved in studies related to GHG emission projections.

Renewable Energy Association is a non-governmental body that develops multi-stakeholder cooperation in the areas of energy efficiency and renewable energy in Belarus. It helps raising awareness amongst RES developers, NGOs, local authorities and representatives of local communities about RES issues.

Last update: 07 2023