Lighting shortfalls: electricity debts have risen to 345 billion
Arrears in electricity payments continue to grow in Russia. As of October 1, 2024, it amounted to almost 345 billion rubles, which is 7% more than at the beginning of the year, according to the documents of the Ministry of Construction. A significant part of debts is overdue for more than one month, and the main non-payers are the population and municipal organizations (including schools and kindergartens). Most debtors live in the Central and Volga Federal Districts, and the longest delay in paying for housing and utilities is in the North Caucasus. At the same time, according to the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Energy, the debts do not threaten the heating season of 2024/25: 97% of power industry entities have received winter readiness certificates.
Who owes the most for electricity
From January 1 to October 1, 2024, consumers' debts for electricity increased by 7% and amounted to 344.9 billion rubles. Moreover, the size of delinquencies for a month or more amounted to 219 billion rubles, which is +19.3 billion (10%) by the end of 2023. Most violators live in the Central Federal District - the district accounted for 75.1 billion rubles (21.8% of the total debt), of which delinquency for a month or more - 44.5 billion. In the Volga District - 60.7 billion and 35.2 billion rubles, respectively.
These data are contained in the documents of the Ministry of Construction (Izvestia has them) for the meeting of the head of the Cabinet of Ministers Mikhail Mishustin, which was held at the end of November. They also specify that among electricity consumers, the bulk of the debt is owed by consumers of the housing and utilities group - Br142.5 billion (that's 41.3%). We are talking about the population, municipal organizations (e.g., schools, kindergartens) and enterprises. And one of the most problematic regions is still the North Caucasus, where the arrears of payment for electricity supply averages almost six months, the Ministry of Construction papers say.
Despite this, the industry is actually fully prepared for the heating season, according to the Ministry of Construction documents. Citing the Ministry of Energy, the ministry specified that 97% of power industry entities have received passports of readiness to work in the heating season. These are companies of generation, power grids and operational dispatch management - almost all of them are functioning properly.
"Izvestia" asked the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Construction, as well as to "Rosseti".
What risks do electricity debts create
Despite the industry's readiness for winter, debts for electricity already supplied create risks for the infrastructure, which is deprived of the necessary funds for modernization, Svetlana Razvorotneva, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Construction and Housing and Utilities, told Izvestia. Now it needs several trillion, the "stuck" funds could partially compensate for the needs of companies, the funds can be used for salaries of employees, consumables and investment projects, the deputy emphasized.
- It is possible to collect debts from individuals, in principle, because supplying organizations have a mechanism for disconnecting citizens for non-payment of electricity bills. From the first day of the debt, they warn the non-payer about the restriction of electricity supply, and then disconnect the apartment from it. There are some problems here: people do not live, for example, in investment apartments, or leave their homes for a long time, but in general this approach works, - said the deputy.
According to her, the main difficulties arise with budgetary organizations, which cannot be disconnected for non-payment. There are also problems with debts of Br500 thousand - they are collected only by the court at the suit of bailiffs. This approach takes time, and also involves serious difficulties. For example, bailiffs do not have the right to access people's personal data, and supplying companies cannot give them such information. As a result, money hangs around for a long time, and debts grow.
Pavel Sklyanchuk, an independent expert in the housing and utilities sector, agreed with Izvestia: debts are growing due to chronic non-payers who delay payment for a month or more, both the population and budget organizations. And it is difficult to solve this problem promptly, the existing tools are not enough, but in the horizon of 5-10 years it may become possible.
Why electricity debts grow every year
Electricity debts have been growing for many years, because of which companies cannot fully cover costs, cut investment programs, and postpone equipment upgrades, explained Izvestia's source in the housing and utilities sector. This creates serious risks for the industry, he agrees with the parliamentarian.
Andrei Romanchuk, deputy chairman of the supervisory board of the Reliable Partner Association (an association of producers and sellers of energy resources), noted that the main increase in debts is observed in the group of industrial consumers, the housing and utilities sector, and the budget. Its total volume is the accumulated debts for past periods, he added.
- Consumers in almost all federal districts have worsened their payments. The growth of indebtedness of industrialists can be attributed to the difficulties, or rather the price of access to credit resources. The dynamics of bank rates also affects the process, - the expert specified. - As a result, there may be a paradoxical story in which it will be more profitable to lend money at the expense of energy companies than to borrow money from banks. At the same time, it should be remembered that the financial burden on energy companies is increasing in difficult conditions, when companies need to meet their obligations to the market and consumers, as well as to implement plans for modernization and development of the domestic energy sector under high credit rates and inflation.
Thepower industry is a leading indicator of the general situation in the economy, Stanislav Shubin, associate professor at the Department of Strategic and Innovative Development of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, told Izvestia.
- Outpacing consumption indicates economic growth, while an increase in debt may indicate growing difficulties. The main risks of generating companies due to the growth of accounts receivable are related to the fact that they need to cover cash gaps. This may require borrowing, the cost of which is now at a high level," he said.
The situation will improve as the economy enters the growth trajectory, the expert believes. If the existing approaches to monetary policy persist, we should expect the situation to worsen: bankruptcy of companies will turn overdue receivables into irrecoverable ones, he emphasized.
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