energies Article Biogas Production in the Russian Federation: Current Status, Potential, and Barriers Tatiana Nevzorova Industrial Economics and Management, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Lindstedtsvägen 30, 114 28 Stockholm, Sweden;
[email protected] Received: 4 June 2020; Accepted: 9 July 2020; Published: 14 July 2020 Abstract: Russia has signed the Paris Agreement and recently approved its ratification. However, the Russian Government does not consider abandoning the production and use of hydrocarbons to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To meet the goals of the Agreement, Russia must find new innovative solutions. This study demonstrates that biogas is one of the most necessary renewable sources in Russia. Despite this, the deployment of biogas technologies is currently extremely slow. In this regard, to assess their subsequent impact on the Russian energy sector as a whole, it is important to identify the factors that hinder the wider implementation of biogas technologies. Based on the findings, the most critical barriers were identified and discussed in detail. In the light of the results, some policy-related recommendations are also proposed. Keywords: biogas; biomethane; barrier identification; Russia; renewable energy policy 1. Introduction The Paris Agreement, which was enacted in November 2016, aims to replace the Kyoto Protocol, has set the objective to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and keep the global average temperature rise below 2 ◦C compared to the pre-industrial level [1]. The document was signed by representatives of more than 170 countries, including Russia. However, Russia did not ratify it until recently. In September 2019, official news emerged that the Prime Minister of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, has approved the ratification of the Paris Agreement [2,3].