The solution of power supply problems of the national economy in the USSR Far East in postwar years (1946-1950)

The article deals with problems of power supply of the national economy of the Far East of the USSR in postwar years. The leading role in the population's life support and in the economic system of the Far East belonged to the industry. The implementation of the socio-economic policy of the country was carried out primarily through the development of industrial production and other sectors of the economy. After the Great Patriotic War there were serious problems with power supply of cities and industrial enterprises in the Far East. They were caused by both common problems that had been accumulated in the energy sector since the pre-war years, and by problems connected with consequences of the war. Firstly, the electric power industry was the worst developed sector of the economy of the Far East region; the shortage of electricity increased from year to year, reaching catastrophic proportions during the war. Secondly, the industry that had been expanding and improving production during the wartime, increasingly demanded electricity. Thirdly, power plants functioning during the war with a serious tension began to have disruptions in their work. By the beginning of 1948, due to the repair of power plants and power grid facilities in the Far East, they managed to stabilize the electricity supply industry, but failed to overcome the increasing shortage of generating capacity. The only way to provide the economy of the Far Eastern region with the necessary amount of electricity was to construct large power plants, to start new generating capacities and construct high-voltage power lines. Huge energy construction began in 1939 but it was interrupted by the Great Patriotic War. The difficulties of the post-war economic recovery and weak government's support for the regional electric power industry hindered to start the construction works of new high-power plants in the Far East region and, as a result, to provide industry, transport, agriculture and urban with electricity of sufficient content. The Soviet Party and economic agencies solved the problem of electricity supply to consumers by expanding the power base without a qualitative change in the structure of the power industry, by introducing limits on the use of electricity and restricting municipal loads. Consequently, there appeared a huge gap in a number of regions of the Far East between the growing needs of the economy in the electricity and the energy base that was unable to meet them. The decentralized way of development of the electric power in fact led to a further increase of the deficit of energy capacities, to the cost-intensity of electricity production and to inefficient management of the energy potential. The level of electrification of the national economy of the Far East significantly lagged behind the other areas of the country. The author concludes that the development of the economy of the Far Eastern region was held back because of the problems connected with the supply of electricity in the postwar years.

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