WSHPDR_2013_Final_Report-updated_version

4.1.1 Belarus
Pascal Hauser, International Center on Small Hydro
Power
Key facts
Population 9,643,566 1
Area 207,600 km 2
Climate
Topography
Rain
pattern
Moderate continental climate, with cool
humid winters and warm summers 2
Generally flat and contains much
marshland
Average annual rainfall of 600 mm to 700
mm. 70 per cent of the rain falls from
April to October. Also 75-125 days of
snow each year, with falls ranging from
150 mm to 300 mm. 2
Electricity sector overview
As of 1 January 2012, the total installed electrical
capacity of Belarus was 8,445 MW. The State Production
Association, Belenergo, carries out the management
functions and economic activities of the Belarusian
energy system, and owns 7,936.8 MW of it; the
remaining capacity is used by industrial (497.7 MW) and
owned by independent private producers (figure 1). 3
Belenergo is the sole purchaser of all electricity,
including imported electricity mainly from the Russian
Federation, Ukraine and Lithuania. 4
Independent 7.45%
Imported Electricty 14.79%
77.76%
Belenergo
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Figure 1 Electricity generation in Belarus
Source: Belenergo 3 and Index Mundi 5
Small hydropower sector overview and potential
In the electricity generation system, there are 35 small
hydropower stations with a total installed capacity of 15
MW (figure 2). 4
SHP installed
capacity
SHP potential
unknow n
15 MW
0 5 10 15 20
Figure 2 Small hydropower capacities in Belarus
Source: Gerasimov 4
The potential capacity of all the watercourses in Belarus
is 850 MW, of which technically available are 520 MW
and economically viable 250 MW. 6 Reegle reports that
hydropower resources in the country are scare, but
there is potential for small hydropower plants in the
Northern and Central parts of the country. 7
In the past, water resources in Belarus were used for
water-mills and saw-mills. Over 170 small hydropower
plants with a total capacity of 20 MW were constructed
from 1950 to 1960 (the largest is in Svisloch, with a
capacity of 2.25 MW), but most of them were closed
down during the development of a centralized energy
system. 8
Renewable energy policy
The 2004 Local Fuels Programme gave priority to
expand the use of wood, peat, and hydropower
resources for small-scale energy generation, as well as
sustaining oil production. The wide-scale use of other
renewable options such as wind, solar, and geothermal
energy seem to be less attractive from an economic
standpoint because of Belarus’s geographical and
geological conditions. This Programme set a target of
nearly double of the power and heat production from
renewable energy resources by 2012. 4
The National legislation for renewable energy includes
the Law (No. 204-З) on Renewable Energy Sources dated
27 December 2010, as well as the resolution of the
Ministry of Economy No. 100 of 30 June 2011 ‘On tariffs
on electricity produced from renewable energy
sources’. 9 This covers hydro, wind, geothermal, wood
and biogas.
The National programme, ‘Development of domestic,
renewable and nonconventional energy sources for
2011-2015’ (No. 586) was approved by the Council of
Ministers on 10 May 2011. 9 The state programme for
the construction of hydropower plants (2011-2015,
approved by the Regulation of the Council of Ministers
of the Republic of Belarus of 17 December 2010 N1838)
plans to construct and reconstruct 33 hydropower
plants with a total capacity of 102.1 MW. The
programme aims to improve the country’s energy
security by replacing fuel and energy imports with
renewables and alleviate the environmental impact of
the fuel and energy sector. 9
The Belarusian Ministry of Energy has planned to build
cascades of low head hydropower plants with an
average capacity of relatively low flooding risks. The
Government has approved the plan of ‘Energy Security
of Belarus’ up to 2020. It calls for innovative approaches
to ensure energy security and independence. 10
318