Russian electricity ten times cheaper than in UK – banker

Low energy prices make Russian industry more competitive than its European rivals, a Sber official has said

Electricity costs for Russian consumers are nearly ten times lower than in the UK, and are roughly four times less than in the EU, a leading banker stated on Wednesday, referring to prices for households and businesses.

Anatoly Popov, deputy chairman of the board of Russia’s largest lender, Sber, was speaking at the Russian Energy Week forum in Moscow.

“Electricity is cheap in Russia. If you take the price in Russia and the price that British industries pay, I do not know if there is any industry left with such prices, but the price is almost ten times lower in Russia than in the UK. In the EU, the prices for industrial consumers are four times higher per kilowatt/hour, and for households also 4-4.5 times higher,” Popov explained.

According to the British government website, floor unit prices for electricity for households averaged £0.34 ($0.41) per kWh over the past year. Russian consumers pay on average $0.04 per kWh.

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The Sber executive also cited the US, saying that electricity prices there are only twice as high as they are in Russia, thanks to the country’s oil and gas reserves and a policy aimed at ensuring energy independence.

The price gap helps make the Russian economy more competitive, according to Popov.

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