Energy in Belarus

Energy in Belarus describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Belarus. Belarus is a net energy importer. According to IEA, the energy import vastly exceeded the energy production in 2015, describing Belarus as one of the world's least energy sufficient countries in the world.[1] Belarus is very dependent on Russia.[2]

Belarus electricity supply by source
Map of power plants
Lukoml power station
Power lines (220, 330 и 750 kv) in Belarus

Total energy consumption (measured by total primary energy supply) in Belarus was 27.0 Mtoe in 2018, similar to consumption in Norway and Hungary.[1] Primary energy use in Belarus was 327 TWh or 34 TWh per million persons in 2008.[3]

Primary energy use per capita in Belarus in 2009 (34 MWh) was slightly more than in Portugal (26 MWh) and about half of the use in Belgium (64 MWh) or Sweden (62 MWh).[3]

Overview
Energy in Belarus[4]
Population
(million)		 Prim. energy
(TWh)		 Production
(TWh)		 Import
(TWh)		 Electricity
(TWh)		 CO2-emission
(Mt)
20049.823114227230.960.6
20079.703264727632.562.7
20089.683274728733.264.2
20099.663114725831.460.8
20129.473435028634.466.0
2012R9.4635547.930935.071.1
20139.4731746.427434.558.3
Change 2004-09-1.6%-0.1%11.9%-5.0%1.6%0.2%
Mtoe = 11.63 TWh, Prim. energy includes energy losses

2012R = CO2 calculation criteria changed, numbers updated

Power plants
NameRegion/cityCapacity, MW[5]
Lukoml GRESVitebsk Region2,889
Byaroza GRESBrest Region1,095
Minsk thermal No. 4Minsk city1,035
Minsk thermal No. 5Minsk Region719.6
Gomel thermal No. 2Gomel city544
Minsk thermal No. 3Minsk city442
Mogilev thermal No. 2Mogilev city347
Grodno thermal No. 2Grodno city302.5
Novopolotsk thermalNovopolotsk city270
Mazyr thermalMazyr city205
Babruysk thermal No. 2Babruysk city182.6
Svietlahorsk thermalSvietlahorsk city155
Minsk thermal No. 2Minsk city94
Viciebsk thermalVitebsk city80
Orsha thermalOrsha city79.8
Barysaw thermalBarysaw city65
Zhodzina thermalZhodzina city54
Lida thermalLida city43
Vitebsk hydroVitebsk Region40
Mogilev thermal No. 1Mogilev city38.5
Gomel thermal No. 1Gomel city37.3
Zhlobin thermalZhlobin city26.2
Pinsk thermalPinsk city22
Polotsk hydroVitebsk Region21.7
Mogilev thermal No. 3Mogilev city19.5
Baranavichy thermalBaranavichy city18
Grodno hydroGrodno Region17
Brest thermalBrest city12
Babruysk thermal No. 1Babruysk city12

The Astravets Nuclear Power Plant is under construction, with the first unit of two expected to come online in 2020.[6]

Natural gas

The country is one of the world’s largest importers of natural gas with estimates for 2018 being about 17 Mtoe (20 billion cubic metres [bcm]) of natural gas, making it the leading importer among the so-called EU4Energy countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. In 2018 almost all generated electricity came from natural gas (97%, or 39 terawatt hours [TWh]).[1] In 1990, the IEA reported natural gas as constituting 52% of electricity generation, with oil generating 48%.[7]

There are two large gas pipes running through Belarus, the Yamal–Europe pipeline and Northern Lights. In addition there is the Minsk–Kaliningrad Interconnection that connects to Kaliningrad.

Oil
Oil refineries, oil and gas pipelines in Belarus

Belarus is a large oil refiner, listed 36th in the world, at 19 Mt of oil products in 2018 by the IEA.[1] It has two refineries and oil pipelines built during the Soviet era including the Mozyr Oil Refinery.

Renewable energy
Main article: Renewable energy in Belarus

Renewable energy generation accounted for 6% of Belarus’s energy in 2018, mostly from biofuels and waste. Renewables share in electricity generation was 2% in 2018 (0.8 TWh).[1]

Storage

Because non-nuclear thermal power plants are ramped up and down depending on heat requirements, and nuclear is not very flexible, increased battery storage has been suggested.[8]

Subsidies

Fossil fuelled heat is heavily subsidized.[9]: 62 

See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Energy in Belarus.

References
  1. Belarus energy profile, International Energy Agency, retrieved May 26, 2021
  2. The Economic Aspects of the Energy Sector in CIS Countries (PDF), European Commission, retrieved May 26, 2021
  3. IEA Key energy statistics 2010 Archived 2010-10-11 at the Wayback Machine Page: Country specific indicator numbers from page 48
  4. IEA Key World Energy Statistics Statistics 2015 Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine, 2014 (2012R as in November 2015 Archived 2015-04-05 at the Wayback Machine + 2012 as in March 2014 is comparable to previous years statistical calculation criteria, 2013 Archived 2014-09-02 at the Wayback Machine, 2012 Archived 2013-03-09 at the Wayback Machine, 2011 Archived 2011-10-27 at the Wayback Machine, 2010 Archived 2010-10-11 at the Wayback Machine, 2009 Archived 2013-10-07 at the Wayback Machine, 2006 Archived 2009-10-12 at the Wayback Machine IEA October, crude oil p.11, coal p. 13 gas p. 15
  5. Установленная мощность, кВт (in Russian)
  6. "Hot tests completed at Ostrovets unit 1". World Nuclear News. 16 April 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  7. IEA statistics: Belarus 1990, archived from the original on 2014-10-22
  8. "How the energy system of Belarus should develop in order to stay beneficial. Forecast". ecoidea.me. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
  9. "Renewables Readiness Assessment: Belarus". /publications/2021/Jul/Renewables-Readiness-Assessment-Belarus. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
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