Effects of climate experiment yet to be assessed, Sakhalin's task is to maintain carbon neutrality until 2029 - Russian economic development minister
ANTALYA. Nov 11 (Interfax) - The Sakhalin climate experiment will be continued, and its contribution to regional and national climate regulation is yet to be assessed, Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov told Interfax on the sidelines of COP31.
"Analysis of the experiment's interim results shows that the economic and financial mechanisms intended to incentivize emission reductions are still actively developing. The contribution of the Sakhalin experiment both to regional climate regulation and to national regulation is yet to be assessed. Sakhalin has declared carbon neutrality, but the region must maintain this status until the experiment ends in 2028. Therefore, together with the Sakhalin region, we will continue its implementation. This is our common position with Governor Valery Limarenko," Reshetnikov said.
The timeframe for implementing the experiment was set taking into account the scale of the tasks and the optimal timeframes for testing new mechanisms; for example, verification of carbon reporting and greenhouse gas emission quotas, he said.
"It is necessary for the transition of the regional economy to balanced development while simultaneously reducing the level of emissions," Reshetnikov said.
The experiment on limiting greenhouse gas emissions, launched on September 1, 2022, is expected to last until December 31, 2028. The Sakhalin regional authorities assessed companies' fulfillment of the established quotas for the first time in 2025. Regulated organizations not only submitted emissions reporting but also offset their quota exceedances.
It was reported in the summer that Sakhalin region Governor Valery Limarenko asked Yuri Trutnev (then deputy prime minister and presidential envoy to the Far East) to assist in the early termination of the climate experiment. The governor was concerned that the greenhouse gas emission limits introduced by the experiment could provoke a slowdown in the region's economic growth.
"The experiment revealed the imperfection of the quota mechanism established by law no. 34-FZ, expressed in a fixed (unchanged) greenhouse gas emission quota for the entire duration of the experiment. In conditions of macroeconomic instability, this restriction for enterprises of the Sakhalin region becomes a factor constraining capacity expansion and production growth," RBC cited the governor as saying in a letter.
