Governor Evgeny Kuivashev issued a series of instructions to the regional government based on the outcome of his meeting with the General Director of Rosseti PJSC, Oleg Budargin. In particular, the regional leader ordered the organization of efficient coordination between the regional authorities and power utilities in terms of weathering the fall-winter season and improving the financial discipline of retail electric companies. 

Evgeny Kuivashev thanked Oleg Budargin for ensuring the reliable functioning of electric-power facilities in Sverdlovsk Region and expressed his eagerness for further cooperation. As you may be aware, Rosseti is represented in our region by its subsidiaries IDGC Urals and MES Urals. The governor also thanked the workforces of Sverdlovsk power utilities for their hard work. 

For his part, the general director of Rosseti PJSC thanked the regional leader for the attention paid in the Middle Urals to the efficient use of each and every tariff ruble. Moreover, Oleg Budargin lauded Sverdlovsk Region as a long-standing and time-trusted supplier of electrical equipment for power engineers. According to Budargin, our region is a powerful center for the production of equipment that is allowing the company to effectively handle the challenges involved in the modernization and renovation of electric-power facilities. 

The parties in the bilateral working meeting tackled all at once a number of the most pressing issues concerning the power supply of customers in Sverdlovsk Region, including the most crucial of all – the fall-winter season.

"The workforces of IDGC Urals, MES Urals and Rosseti PJSC as a whole have geared up for the winter in Sverdlovsk Region with distinction. We’re handling everything smoothly so far, and we’ll continue to do everything in our power to ensure that the residents of Sverdlovsk Region feel confident and well-assured,” remarked Oleg Budargin. 

He reported to the governor that compared to last year, failure rates were down by 18% in Sverdlovsk Region so far this year, and that these rates are important to maintain.

Evgeny Kuivashev and Oleg Budargin also discussed Rosseti’s participation in the modernization of the power-grid complex in Sverdlovsk Region. "The volumes of the repair program must be maximized so as to reduce grid fatigue. In the end, the quality of life of Sverdlovsk residents and the performance of our enterprises depend on it,” noted the regional leader. 

The Rosseti chief told the governor that this year, the repair program in Sverdlovsk Region had been increased by 10%, and that this volume would carry over to next year. 

Another of today’s pressing concerns is reducing electric-power losses on the grids in Sverdlovsk Region. For the region as a whole, these losses currently stand at 6%, while the same indicator can climb as high as 9% in Ekaterinburg. The problem is being caused by consumers’ unlawful connection to the grids. Oleg Budargin noted that while the company has taken to calling this behavior “unauthorized consumption,” what’s really at issue is “power theft.” He reported that IDGC Urals is conducting regular raids in conjunction with the Sverdlovsk police. Just the day before, in fact, such measures in Ekaterinburg had resulted in the identification of six consumers who had unlawfully connected to the grids.

A separate topic of the discussion touched on the issue of connecting new customers to the grids in Sverdlovsk Region, because this process can also be bumpy. The Rosseti general director reported that customers who have connected this year are using just 20% of the power for which they has originally applied, or have turned out to be unprepared for connection altogether. This means that the company has spent a lot of money on the technical connection of customers who ended up defaulting on their obligations. Evgeny Kuivashev agreed with Rosseti management’s position that this situation is unacceptable, and ordered an inquiry into the matter aimed at finding an effective solution.

A sore subject for the grid company continues to be the accounts receivable of retail electric companies, which in Sverdlovsk Region currently stands at roughly 1 billion rubles. "This is money that customers have spent, but which retail has failed to transfer to us for our work. The Sverdlovsk Regional Government has always paid close attention to this issue, and the fact that the governor has now demanded that the government hold regular meetings on financial discipline should elevate the entire process of financial-discipline improvements to a qualitatively-new level,” concluded Oleg Budargin.