Measuring the market power of Russian energy companies based on their operating and financial results

As a result of the reform of the Russian electric power industry in the 2000s, the Russian electricity market was formed, where large generating companies operate in the production sector. Oligopolistic relations can reduce the social efficiency of the market mechanism. The task of identifying signs of manifestation of market power does not have a clear and generally accepted solution. In this article, the authors propose an approach to solving it, based on the analysis of the dynamics of fuel costs over several years. It allows us to assert that there are signs of market power for companies that provide about a quarter of electricity generation. At the same time, the observed manifestations are not related to the size of the companies, the presence or absence of cogeneration. A general trend towards a decrease in the market power of companies over the past few years has been identified. In addition, there has been a decline in the competitiveness of companies owning generating capacities specializing only in electricity compared to companies with cogeneration capacities, which is most likely a consequence of the specific structure of the Russian electricity and heat market.