Russian factories, mining companies, and data centers are increasingly considering their own generation. In some places, the grid capacity is no longer sufficient; in others, connection takes years, and for data centers, backup power is becoming a mandatory operating condition.
Diesel remains the primary backup option, but more and more projects are considering gas. With grid electricity prices around 9.3 rubles per kWh, an own power plant sometimes looks more profitable. The problem lies elsewhere: it cannot be installed quickly — approvals, gas, and a suitable site are needed.
Demand from data centers is particularly noticeable. If in 2025 they accounted for about 17% of PSM's diesel generator portfolio, in 2026 the company expects 40–50%. In Moscow, such projects also face issues with noise, ecology, and a simple lack of space.
Western installations have almost disappeared from new projects: they are difficult to import, expensive to maintain, and delivery of some models is offered with a waiting period until 2027–2028. Therefore, the market is increasingly shifting to Chinese engines, which need to be refined and adapted on-site.
The main question now is not whether businesses need their own power plant, but how to build it quickly. Requests for 100–200 MW are already appearing, but there is no ready-made model for such scales in Russia yet — the market is just learning to assemble it from scratch.
Data Center Energy Crisis: What's Already Happening
We have already written that power grid companies have stopped signing new connection agreements for data centers in Moscow: available capacities have been exhausted, and new generation is planned only for 2027–2030. In parallel, mining, AI infrastructure, and cloud services have begun to compete for the same gigawatts — data center load already reaches 4 GW, about 2% of the country's total energy consumption. In response to the growing deficit, the Ministry of Energy stated that companies have the right to independently invest in the construction of generation near their facilities, while Moscow data centers, meanwhile, were offered to put up with the risk of outages during peak load hours. This context explains why self-generation is turning from a backup option into an operational necessity.