Authorities in Irkutsk Region Urge Miners to Create Their Own Power Generation

Authorities in the Irkutsk region are urging miners to create their own power generation, to reduce the load on regional power grids. Konstantin Zaitsev, Chairman of the regional government, stated that mining can exist by generating its own electricity, especially if the region is supplied with network gas from the Kovykta field.

Since 2022, electricity consumption in the Irkutsk region has increased by 20% due to the explosive growth of mining. !%Mining consumes about 1 GW of electricity per year%, while the installed capacity of the Irkutsk Hydroelectric Power Plant is 760 MW. The southern part of the region has become energy-deficient.

In August, regional authorities appealed to the federal government to define the procedure for prohibiting mining in energy-deficient areas.