A Study Of Russian Energy Industry In The Late 19th And Early 20th Century

The industry and commerce in Russia had a rapid development after the reform in 1861, and the industrialization began along with it. In the middle 1890 s, the industrial revolution in Russia was basically completed, and Russia had become a developed country before the first world war. While the productivity was developed quickly, all industrial sectors grew up rapidly, and the achievements in energy industry attracted worldwide attention. Study on the development course of the energy industry in Russia and analysis on such factors as transportation, market, foreign investment and monopolization during such course can help to reveal the laws, modes and features of economic development in Russia, and understand the relationship between social/economic development and natural environment. In Chinese academic field, there is no systematic research on the energy industry in Russia before the revolution. Based on many archives and academic fruits consulted, the author takes the energy industry in Russia before the revolution as the object of study, so that the overall trend of industrial development in Russia can be studied at a macroscopic level, the forming and development of petroleum and coal industries can be discussed systematically at a microscopic level, and the influence of the energy industry in Russia can be demonstrated in detail.The whole paper consists of three parts, respectively introduction, text and conclusion.In the part of introduction, the main contents of this study, the significance of the topic, the status quo of domestic and overseas study on this topic, the methodology of study, and the innovative points and shortcomings of this study are mainly introduced.In the first chapter, the petroleum industry in Russia is mainly introduced. By virtue of such advantages as resource, policy, technology, fund and transportation, the petroleum industry grew up quickly, with a development speed incomparable by any other industrial sector at the end of the 19 th century. To certain extent, the progress of industrial revolution in Russia depended on the development conditions of the petroleum industry. To better analyze the petroleum industry in Russia, the author, starting from the development course of the petroleum industry, introduced the origin, boom, depression and stagnancy phases of the industry, and analyzed important factors during the development course of the industry such as transportation, market, foreign investment, and so on. From such analysis the author made the conclusion that the gradual improvement in transport vehicles and the change in transport means were the premises of the development of the petroleum industry, and also important factors for enlargement of the market scale and scope of the petroleum industry. The enlargement of market scope and capacity was a driving force for the development of the petroleum industry, and played an important role for the domestic and overseas market during the development course of the petroleum industry in Russia. Foreign capital was an intensifier of the petroleum industry in Russia, and foreign monopoly groups controlled that industry by virtue of advantages in fund and technology.In the second chapter, the coal industry in Russia is analyzed. The coal industry in Russia had an early development, quickly grew up in the second half of the 19 th century, and reached the greatest prosperity at the beginning of the 20 th century. To better analyze the development conditions and influence of the coal industry, the author first gave an overview of the development conditions of the coal industry in Russia, from which the origin and development courses of that industry ccan be seen and the mining output and functions of the coalfields can be known. The author took Donetsk Coalfield, which had the highest mining output, as an example to discuss the development course of the coal industry in Russia. Then, the author analyzed the transportation and market conditions, which played important roles during the development of the coal industry in Russia. Along with the gradual expansion of the railway network, although Russia imported coal constantly before the revolution, the domestic coal enterprises gradually monopolized the domestic market other than the Baltic Sea area due to the rich coal resources and the continuous improvement in mining technology. In addition, while the foreign capital played a more and more important role in the coal industry in Russia, the degree of production concentration of this sector had gradual increase, and large companies monopolized the coal industry. In addition to the analysis on the French and Belgian capital that played the most important role in the coal industry in South Russia, the author also discussed the degree of monopolization in that industry, the large-scale monopolies and their impacts.In the third chapter, the factors influencing the development of the energy industry in Russia is discussed. The author respectively analyzed the stimulating factors and inhibiting factors for the energy industry in Russia. There were many stimulating factors for the development of that industry, among which government policies, market, technological revolution and foreign capital were the most important ones. Analysis of these factors one by one can help to know not only the cause for the rising of the energy industry in Russia but also the development processes of this industrial sector. Among these factors, government policy was a determinant factor for the rising of the energy industry in Russia, technological revolution was a driving force for this industry, foreign capital promoted the boom of this industry, market intensification all over Russia provided additional energy for the development of this industry, and the good economic situation provided a good development environment for this industry. At the end of the 19 th century and the beginning of the 20 th century, the energy industry in Russia had achievements that attracted world attention. However, such factors as the low mining technology, the economic crisis, the impact of imported coal and the competition from similar products in domestic and overseas market restricted the development of the energy industry in Russia.In the fourth chapter, In the fifth chapter, the function of the energy industry during the industrialization in Russia is analyzed. After the development of the energy industry, the proportion of mineral fuels in the fuel structures of all the industrial sectors and the transportation industry was increased continuously. By the end of the 19 th century, petroleum products had become the dominant fuel in industry and transportation. At the beginning of the 20 th century, coal was the major fuel in industrial sectors and railway industry, while petroleum products were major fuels in river transport sector. Development of the energy industry was a symbol of the transition of the industry and transportation in Russia from traditional wooden fuels to mineral fuels, and was also a driving force for many industrial sectors and a guarantee for the remarkable industrial achievements in Russia in the 19 th century. Large-scale use of mineral fuels in industrial sectors and transportation was an important driving factor for the quick completion of the industrial revolution in Russia. Mineral fuels helped to reduce cost and improve working efficiency, and promoted the quick rising of many industrial sectors.The energy industry provided rich fuels for industry and transportation in Russia, and the development status of this industry determined the industrialization process in Russia to certain extent. The petroleum industry had the widest impact, which quickened the development of the petroleum processing industry, promoted the birth of oil transporting fleets on Caspian Sea and Volga River, and had considerable impact on metallurgy, electricity industry and ship building industry. Coal industry was also a powerful lever that drove the industrial revolution process in Russia. The rapid development of metallurgy and machine building industry in South Russia was backed by rich coal resources, and during this process the coking industry, a derivative sector, also grew up quickly and other sectors related to coal industry also had rapid development. Thus, development of the energy industry accelerated the industrialization in Russia, and was an important part of the industrialization. In addition to its own growth, it drove the development of many industrial sectors, and had an impact on the industrialization much higher than other industrial sectors.In the part of conclusion, the importance of the energy industry during the industrialization in Russia is demonstrated. This industrial sector was an important driving force for Russia’s entry into the group of developed countries. The author discussed the direct influence of the energy industry in Russia, and pointed out that firstly the energy industry promoted the transition of fuel structure toward mineral fuels and accelerated the industrialization process and the movement of the economic center toward the south. Meanwhile, due to the development of the energy industry, not only the domestic market had increasingly close interaction, but also the industrial products made in Russia had increased shares in the world market. Secondly, during the development course of the energy industry in Russia, foreign capital played an important role, which made the energy industry highly dependent on foreign investment and restricted the long-term development of this sector while provided funds and advanced technologies for the energy industry. Thirdly, the energy industry in Russia had a high monopolization degree, and large-scale monopolies were born in both petroleum industry and coal industry. Although the monopolies drove the technological reform in the energy industry and reform of management systems in enterprises, and the large enterprises established based on fund advantages promoted the development of the energy industry, showing that these groups meet the need of productivity development, these groups also had considerable negative impacts.