The Goelro Plan was developed in 1920. The Goelro Plan is the first plan for the development of the national economy in world history.

GOELRO (State Commission for Electrification of Russia) is a body created on February 21, 1920 to develop a project for the electrification of Russia after the October Revolution of 1917. The abbreviation often stands for the State Plan for Electrification of Russia, that is, a product of the GOELRO Commission, which became the first long-term economic development plan adopted and implemented in Russia after the revolution.

Russian energy before the revolution

In 1913, Russia produced only 14 kWh per capita, for comparison, in the United States this figure was 236 kWh. But if in terms of quantitative characteristics the difference is obvious, then in terms of qualitative characteristics pre-revolutionary Russia was in no way inferior to advanced foreign countries.

The first electric tram in Russia appeared back in 1892

The level of equipment of Russian power plants and their capacity were quite consistent with Western ones and grew simultaneously with them. The intensive development of the Russian electric power industry at the beginning of the twentieth century was determined by the emergence and then the introduction of electric drives into industry, the emergence of electric transport, and the growth of electric lighting in cities.

However, all power plants built in Russia - in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kyiv, Baku, Riga, etc. had a limited (from one to several dozen) number of consumers and were not energetically connected to each other. Moreover, the values ​​of their current values ​​and frequencies had a colossal scatter, since no unified system existed in the development of these stations.

The power plant on Raushskaya embankment in Moscow (MOGES) has been operating since 1897

Meanwhile, the domestic electrical engineering school was considered one of the best in the world. Its activities were coordinated by the VI (Electrical Engineering) Department of the Russian Technical Society, as well as by All-Russian Electrotechnical Congresses, of which seven took place from 1900 to 1913. At these congresses, both technical and purely strategic problems were considered. In particular, the question of where it is better to build thermal power plants: directly in industrial regions - in order to deliver fuel to them, or, on the contrary, - in the place where this fuel is produced, in order to then transmit electricity through power lines. Most Russian scientists and electrical engineers were inclined to the second option - mainly because central Russia had the largest reserves of brown coal and especially peat, which was unsuitable for transportation and practically not used as fuel.

The experience of creating such regional stations, operating on local rather than fuel brought from afar and providing electricity to a large industrial region, was first implemented near Moscow in 1914. Near Bogorodsk (later Noginsk), a peat power plant “Electroperedacha” was built, the energy from which was transmitted to consumers in Moscow via a high-voltage line with a voltage of 70 kV. In addition, for the first time in Russia this station was switched on in parallel with another. This was the power plant on Raushskaya Embankment (now the 1st MOGES), which had been operating in Moscow since 1897. In 1915, at a meeting on the problems of using coal and peat near Moscow, G. M. Krzhizhanovsky, director of the Elektroperedacha station, made a report. His report already contained all those main principles of energy construction, which five years later became the basis of the future GOELRO plan.

Gleb Krzhizhanovsky joined the Electric Lighting Society of Russia before the revolution

As energy construction in Russia grew, experts became increasingly convinced that the country needed a unified national program that would link the development of industry in the regions with the development of the energy base, as well as with the electrification of transport and housing and communal services. At electrical congresses, resolutions were repeatedly adopted on the national importance of electricity supply, on the need to build large power plants near fuel deposits and in river basins and to connect these stations to each other using a developed power transmission network.

However, it cannot be said that the Russian government authorities reacted in any way to these resolutions, while energy construction sometimes caused very peculiar reactions among the local public. For example, G. M. Krzhizhanovsky’s development of the problem of using the Volga’s hydro resources in the Samarskaya Luka area became the reason for the following letter:

"Confidentially. Table No. 4, No. 685. Dispatch. Italy, Sorrento, province of Naples. To the Count of the Russian Empire, His Excellency Orlov-Davydov. Your Excellency, calling upon you God's grace, I ask you to accept the archpastoral notice: on your hereditary ancestral domains, the projectors of the Samara Technical Society, together with the apostate engineer Krzhizhanovsky, are designing the construction of a dam and a large power station. Show mercy by your arrival to preserve God's peace in the Zhiguli domains and destroy sedition in its conception. With true archpastoral respect, I have the honor to be your Excellency’s protector and pilgrim. Diocesan Bishop, His Grace Simeon, Bishop of Samara and Stavropol. June 9th, 1913.”

All this taken together could not but influence the mood of electrical engineers and, perhaps, became one of the reasons that many of them, including Alliluyev, Krasin, Krzhizhanovsky, Smidovich and others, were involved in the revolutionary shaking of the country. Moreover, the leaders of the world proletariat turned out to be much more perspicacious in this regard than the authorities of tsarist Russia and foresaw the key role that electricity was to play in the social transformation of society.

History of GOELRO implementation

One of those political figures who correctly assessed this role was V.I. Lenin is a great enthusiast for the electrification of Russia. Based on Marx's thesis about capitalism as the era of steam, Lenin believed that socialism would become the era of electricity. Back in 1901, he wrote: “...at the present time, when it is possible to transmit electrical energy over distances... there are absolutely no technical obstacles to the fact that the treasures of science and art, accumulated over centuries, can be used by the entire population, distributed more or less evenly throughout the country.” . It is noteworthy that this was said many decades before the advent of not only the Internet, but also the computer and even television.

Electrification of Moscow outskirts

Be that as it may, when solving the problem of restoring and developing the country’s economy according to a unified state plan that arose after October 1917, Lenin put electrification at the forefront. He became, as Krzhizhanovsky put it, “a great pusher for the cause of electrification.”

By the end of 1917, a catastrophic fuel situation had developed in the country (especially in Moscow and Petrograd): Baku oil and Donetsk coal were unavailable. And already in November, Lenin, at the suggestion of engineer I.I., who had 5 years of experience working at the Elektroperedacha peat power plant. Radchenko gave instructions on the construction of the Shaturskaya - also peat - power plant near Moscow. At the same time, he showed interest in the works of G.O. Graftio on the design of the Volkhov hydroelectric station near Petrograd and the possibility of using military personnel in its construction.

And in January 1918, the First All-Russian Conference of Electrical Industry Workers took place, proposing the creation of a body to manage energy construction. Such a body - Elektrostroy - appeared in May 1918, and at the same time the Central Electrical Engineering Council (Central Electrical Engineering Council) was formed - the successor and continuator of the All-Russian electrical engineering congresses. It included the largest Russian power engineers: I. G. Alexandrov, A. V. Winter, G. O. Graftio, R. E. Klasson, A. G. Kogan, T. R. Makarov, V. F. Mitkevich, N.K. Polivanov, M.A. Chatelain and others. Skeptical of the ideology of the new government and categorically rejecting its methods, these people, nevertheless, came to the conclusion that opposing it would bring harm to Russia.

Another reason was also important. Technocrats, who for many years did not have the opportunity to bring their ideas to life, now have this chance. The new government has consistently demonstrated its interest and political will in this matter.

And finally, not least, apparently, purely pragmatic considerations played a role. In conditions of devastation, lack of the most necessary products and living conditions, as well as persecution, searches and confiscations, power engineers who collaborated with the Soviet government found themselves in a completely different world. They were provided with living space, rations, social benefits, and G.O. Graftio, for example, thanks to Lenin’s personal intercession, was spared from the excessively close attention of the security officers.

In December 1918, the CES organized a Bureau to develop a general plan for the electrification of the country, and about a year later, Krzhizhanovsky sent Lenin his article “Tasks of Electrification of Industry” and received an enthusiastic response to it. And also a request to write about this problem popularly - in order to captivate “the masses of workers and class-conscious peasants” with it.

The brochure, written literally in a week, was immediately published, and a couple of weeks later the Council of Workers' and Peasants' Defense approved, and Lenin signed, the regulations on the GOELRO Commission - the State Plan for the Electrification of Russia. The commission consisted of 19 people:

G. M. Krzhizhanovsky – chairman,

A. I. Eisman – Deputy Chairman,

A. G. Kogan, B. I. Ugrimov - comrades of the chairman,

N. N. Vashkov, N. S. Sinelnikov - deputy comrades of the chairman,

G. O. Graftio, L. V. Dreyer, G. D. Dubelir, K. A. Krug, M. Ya. Lapirov-Skoblo, B. E. Stunkel, M. A. Shatelain, E. Ya. Shulgin - members, D. I. Komarov, R. A. Ferman, L. K. Ramzin, A. I. Tairov, A. A. Schwartz - deputy members.

From left to right: K.A. Krug, G.M. Krzhizhanovsky, B.I. Ugrimov, R.A. Ferman, N.N. Vashkov, M.A. Smirnov. 1920 Meeting of the commission to develop the GOELRO plan

Less than a year later, in December 1920, the plan was developed and approved at an extended meeting of the GOELRO Commission.

Pavel Florensky, a famous philosopher and electrical engineer, came to meetings of the commission for the development of GOELRO in a cassock

The plan represented a unified program for the revival and development of the country and its specific industries - primarily heavy industry, and considered the maximum possible increase in labor productivity to be the main means. And moreover, not only through intensification and rationalization, but also through the replacement of the muscular efforts of people and animals with mechanical energy. And this program especially emphasized the promising role of electrification in the development of industry, construction, transport and agriculture. The directive proposed using mainly local fuel, including low-value coal, peat, shale, gas and wood.

Electrification plan of the RSFSR

The restoration of the destroyed economy was considered in the plan only as part of the program - the basis for subsequent reconstruction, reorganization and development of the country's national economy. In total, it was designed for ten and fifteen years with strict adherence to the deadlines for specific work. And it was developed in extremely detail: it determined the trends, structure and proportions of development not only for each industry, but also for each region.

Start of construction of the Kashira power plant (photomontage)

For the first time in Russia, the authors of the GOELRO plan proposed its economic zoning based on considerations of the proximity of sources of raw materials (including energy), the existing territorial division and specialization of labor, as well as convenient and well-organized transport. As a result, seven main economic regions were identified: Northern, Central Industrial, Southern, Volga, Ural, Caucasian, as well as Western Siberia and Turkestan.

From the very beginning, it was assumed that the GOELRO plan would be introduced by law, and centralized economic management should contribute to its successful implementation. In fact, it became the first state plan in Russia and laid the foundation for the entire subsequent planning system in the USSR, anticipating the theory, methodology and problems of future five-year plans. And in June 1921, the GOELRO Commission was abolished, and on its basis, the State General Planning Commission was created - Gosplan, which from that time led the entire economy of the country for many decades.

History of implementation and fate of authors and performers

The so-called “A” program of the GOELRO plan, which provided for the restoration of the country’s destroyed energy sector, was completed already in 1926. And by 1931, the minimum ten-year period of the program, all planned indicators for energy construction were exceeded. Instead of the projected 1,750 kW of new capacity, 2,560 kW of new capacity was put into operation, and electricity production almost doubled in the last year alone. By the end of the fifteen-year period, by 1935, Soviet energy had reached the level of world standards and took third place in the world, after the United States and Germany.

General view of the presidium of the ceremonial meeting in the House of Unions in honor of the 10th anniversary of GOELRO. Moscow, 1930. RGAKFD.

The success of the plan was most clearly manifested in the gradual elimination of imported supplies of equipment - due to the growth of power engineering in this industry. If in 1923 the Elektrosila plant produced only the first four hydrogenerators with a capacity of 7.5 MW each for the Volkhov hydroelectric power station, then by the mid-30s such large enterprises as Elektrozavod (Moscow), Dynamo (Moscow) were operating in the country ), “Krasny Kotelshchik” (Taganrog), Turbogenerator Plant named after S. M. Kirov (Kharkov). And starting from 1934, the USSR no longer needed imports for power engineering.

The construction itself proceeded at a pace unprecedented in history. And the reason for this was not only the enthusiasm of the people, but also a number of very shadowy aspects of the implementation of the GOELRO plan. A significant part of the builders were not only soldiers drafted into the so-called “construction labor army,” but also prisoners. And to finance the program, treasures of national culture were widely sold. And also grain - and this in conditions when famine was raging in many regions of the country, and primarily in the Volga region and Ukraine. And in general, for many years, all social sectors of the economy were financed only on a residual basis, which is why the people in the USSR lived difficultly.

Volkhovskaya HPP

Without this, the plan could hardly be completed on time.

As for the help of foreign specialists, these were mainly the so-called chief engineers and consultants, with the help of whom the installation and commissioning of equipment supplied from abroad was carried out.

Sometimes the habits and ambitions of representatives of Western companies conflicted with the interests of domestic energy developers. Western pedantry, the desire to strictly follow the letter and paragraph of agreements, regulations, standards and instructions, was difficult to coexist with the Soviet mentality, focused on the speedy commissioning of facilities. Foreigners were unaccustomed to extracurricular and three-shift work, ignoring sleep, rest, and timely nutrition; they lived by their own rules and routine. It happened that this led to difficult and even emergency situations.

During the construction of the Shterovskaya State District Power Plant, deep cracks formed in its brand new concrete foundation during testing. It turned out that pedantic chief installers from England took breaks from work regularly and at regular intervals. And the concrete at the levels to which it was supposed to be supplied during these pauses had time to dry out, and as a result it did not set well and cracked at the first vibration. After a lawsuit was brought against the English company, it had to redo the work.

But for the most part, foreigners worked honestly and efficiently and received government gratitude and gifts in addition to their salaries. And some - such as, for example, the chief consultant of Dneprostroy, Colonel Cooper - were awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.

By the mid-30s, the need for foreign assistance had disappeared, but a number of foreign specialists did not want to leave the USSR and remained with us until the war. There were also those who did not have time to leave, and the fate of many of them turned out to be tragic. Some were repressed by our authorities: they were exiled to Siberia, Kazakhstan, the Far East, others were interned in Germany and were subjected to repression there.

The fates of the members of the GOELRO Commission also turned out differently. All of them belonged to the country's energy elite, and the positions they occupied by the early 30s corresponded to the upper steps in the hierarchy of the Soviet party and economic nomenklatura. I. G. Alexandrov - chief engineer of Dneprostroy, and then a member of the Presidium of the State Planning Committee, A. V. Winter - director of Dneprostroy, and then the manager of Glavenergo, G. M. Krzhizhanovsky - chairman of the State Planning Committee, etc. Many of them were used by the people very popular

Perhaps this is what prompted Stalin to remove electrifiers from leadership work and bring his own creatures to the forefront: A. A. Andreev, L. M. Kaganovich, V. V. Kuibyshev, G. K. Ordzhonikidze and others. And then he transferred many of the main creators of the GOELRO plan to the system of the Academy of Sciences: bypassing all the necessary intermediate steps, I. G. Alexandrov, B. E. Vedereev, A. V. Winter, G. O. Graftio, G. M. became academicians. Krzhizhanovsky. Not everyone, however, had such a fortunate fate. Of the leadership core of the GOELRO Commission alone, five people were repressed: N. N. Vashkov, G. D. Dubellir, G. K. Riesenkamf, B. E. Stunkel, B. I. Ugrimov.

PREDECESSORS AND FOLLOWERS

Among the myths that exist regarding the GOELRO plan is that it allegedly does not represent an original development, but is copied from the book of the German professor of political economy K. Ballod, published in Germany in 1898 and called “The State of the Future, Production and Consumption in a Socialist state." Domestic electrifiers were, of course, very familiar with this book and used it when developing the GOELRO plan. But, firstly, this material itself is just a desk project, quite abstract, and the question of its implementation has never been and could not be raised. Secondly, Russian scientific personnel did not lag behind foreign ones, and in some respects - including in the issue of building an economy based on energy - even ahead of them. And, thirdly, and this is the most important thing, the nature and raw materials of Russia, its territory, economy, demography, national mentality and even the monetary system are so unique that they exclude the very possibility of completely borrowing, much less copying, any specific programs .

Therefore, we can safely say that both in theoretical and practical aspects, the GOELRO plan is original and has no analogues in world practice. On the contrary: its uniqueness, attractiveness and practical reality have led to attempts to copy it by the leading countries of the world. In the period 1923-1931, electrification programs appeared in the USA (developed by Fran Baum), Germany (Oscar Miller), England (the so-called Weyer Commission), France (engineers Velem, Duval, Lavanchy, Mathivet and Molyar), as well as Poland, Japan and etc. But they all ended in failure at the planning and feasibility stage.

RESULTS

The GOELRO plan played a huge role in the life of our country: without it, it would hardly have been possible to bring the USSR into the ranks of the most industrially developed countries in the world in such a short time. The implementation of this plan shaped, in fact, the entire domestic economy and still largely determines it.

The drawing up and implementation of the GOELRO plan became possible solely due to a combination of many objective and subjective factors: the considerable industrial and economic potential of pre-revolutionary Russia, the high level of the Russian scientific and technical school, the concentration in one hand of all economic and political power, its strength and will, as well as the traditional conciliar-communal mentality of the people and their obedient and trusting attitude towards the supreme rulers.

The GOELRO plan and its implementation proved the high efficiency of the state planning system in conditions of strictly centralized government and predetermined the development of this system for many decades.

The sacrifices made by the Soviet people for the implementation of the GOELRO plan were enormous. To forget about the present day for the sake of the future - such was the pathos of the system that gave birth to this plan and ensured its implementation.

When preparing the material, information from the article “GOELRO PLAN. MYTHS AND REALITY” by V. Gvozdetsky, head. Department of the History of Technology and Technical Sciences of the Institute of the History of Natural Science and Technology named after S. I. Vavilov RAS.

The abbreviation GOELRO stands for “State Commission for the Electrification of Russia” or simply “Russian Electrification Plan”. For its time, it was a fairly promising tool for the development of the economy of Soviet Russia. It was assumed that within 10-15 years, about thirty largest power plants with a total capacity of 8.8 billion kilowatts per hour would be built in the country. For comparison before the coup 1917 per year in Russia produced only 1,9 billion kilowatts per hour.
The creator of the GOELRO plan was V.I. Lenin himself, who was a great supporter of electrical energy. He often said that if capitalism is the era of steam, then socialism will reach a new level and become the era of electricity.

“If our state is covered with a powerful network of power plants and powerful technological equipment, then our socialist economic construction will be among the most advanced in Europe.”

The basis of the GOELRO plan was the development of the best Russian scientists, who were created back in the First World War.
The tsarist government rejected such a project because of its high cost and difficulty in implementation, and the Soviet government allocated enormous resources to bring this plan to life. The engineers set to work with almost sheer enthusiasm.
Already in January 1918 In 2008, an all-Russian conference of workers in the electrical industry was held. It was decided to create a body to manage energy construction "Elektrostroy", as well as "CES" - the Central Electrical Engineering Council, which included professional Russian power engineers.

December 1918 In 2009, with the assistance of the Central Electric Power System, a Bureau was created in which a general plan for the electrification of the entire state was developed.
In the shortest possible time, in about one year, the plan was created.

Much later in 1921 year, a decision was made to abandon GOELRO and create Gosplan - the State General Planning Commission. From that moment on, all economic activities of the state were in charge of this organization.

GOELRO results

Already by 1926 year, all the energy sector of the state destroyed during the war years was restored.K 1931 year, the planned indicators of the GOELRO plan were fulfilled and exceeded.
By opening Wikipedia you can find out that compared to 1913 year in 1932 year, electricity generation increased not in 4 times as planned, and in 7 once.
A remarkable fact is that after the First World War and the crazy civil war, Soviet energy became 1935 year to the level of the super powers of that time, the USA and Germany, and took an honorable third place.
Unfortunately, to make an economic breakthrough, our state used labor

On December 22, 1921, the GOELRO plan was adopted.
Ask a modern schoolchild - what is GOELRO?
Yeah, the results will be the same as with the question “who is Rocinante?”
Meanwhile, if it weren’t for GOELRO... who knows what Russia would be like today (and would it be in general)?
You and I would definitely not exist.
I hope everyone has read Bradbury's "And Thunder Came"?

So what am I talking about?

To understand what GOELRO was, you must first find out what came before it.

A small but informative post on this topic was written by a fellow energy engineer frudor :
Development of the electric power industry in pre-revolutionary Russia.

Power stations “Electrotransmission”

At the dawn of the domestic electric power industry in pre-revolutionary Russia, there was no planning, there was poor industrial development, and agriculture significantly prevailed over all other industries. All this legitimately had a negative impact on the development of this very complex and important electric power industry.

We can say that the electric power industry was then in its infancy. There were fragmented small utility and factory installations, handicraft operated and operating with very low efficiency. As a rule, stations were built to serve a single enterprise or a small group of consumers located in close proximity to the source of power supply. Each power plant had its own power grid, which had no connections with the networks of other power plants, even in such large cities as St. Petersburg and Moscow. In addition, both the level and type (DC, AC) of voltage, and frequency (20, 40 or 50 Hz) in different networks were different. There were both single-phase and three-phase networks. The transmission of electricity over distances was considered by the owners of power plants (who were most often foreigners) exclusively in a narrowly commercial direction. The energy industry at that time was developing very chaotically and was more of an experimental and trial nature within the country. There were no uniform norms and standards for this still new industry.

The main energy centers of that time were St. Petersburg, Moscow and Baku - areas with the most developed industry. At all ten stations of these cities, about 170,000 kW was installed in 1913, i.e., approximately 16.5% of the total capacity of all electrical stations in Russia. But even at these most powerful installations, which can only conditionally be subsumed under the modern concept of regional stations, there was essentially no centralized supply of energy to consumers. The stations operated in isolation, sometimes differing in basic electrical parameters. For example, until 1914, Moscow was supplied with electricity from two stations - the “Joint-Stock Company for Electric Lighting of 1886” and "Tram". Both stations were of three-phase voltage: the first had a voltage of 2.2 and 6.6 kV, at a frequency of 50 Hz, the second - 6.6 kV at 25 Hz. There was no parallel operation of stations. At the time of 1913, Russia had about 109 km of overhead power lines with voltages above 10 kV.

In 1912, construction began on the first regional power plant in Russia, “Electroperedacha” (now Klasson State District Power Plant) with a capacity of 15,000 kW. It was built in Bogorodsk and was intended to cover the increased load of Moscow. The station was put into operation in 1914. The double-circuit line "Electric Transmission" built in connection with this - Moscow (to the Izmailovskaya substation), with a voltage of 70 kV and a length of 70 km, as well as a step-down substation at the end of the line - was the first step in the construction of networks in pre-revolutionary Russia and the parallel operation of stations. At the same time, a 33 kV network was built in the substation area and distributed electricity to a number of factories and factories.

This was the first station that can be classified as a regional station. Further construction of regional stations and networks began only after the revolution, on the basis of a unified plan for the electrification of the country. However, even then the technical community pointed out the advantages of regional stations and the enormous prospects for electrification of industry.

And against the backdrop of all this, the young, hungry and cold Republic of the Soviets, which had not yet recovered from the civil war, decided to implement the “State Plan for the Electrification of Russia” - as part of the abbreviation GOELRO stands for.
In fact, GOELRO is "State Commission for Electrification of Russia".

What did the GOELRO plan include?

In 1920, in less than 1 year (during the civil war and intervention), the government under the leadership of Lenin developed a long-term plan for the electrification of the country, for which, in particular, it was created Electrification Plan Commission under the leadership of G. M. Krzhizhanovsky. About 200 scientists and engineers were involved in the work of the commission.
In December 1920, the plan developed by the commission was approved by the VIII All-Russian Congress of Soviets, and a year later it was approved by the IX All-Russian Congress of Soviets.

GOELRO was a development plan not just the energy sector, but the entire economy .
It provided for the construction of enterprises that would provide these construction sites with everything necessary, as well as the rapid development of the electric power industry. And all this was tied to territorial development plans. Among them is the one founded in 1927.
As part of the plan, the development of the Kuznetsk coal basin also began, around which a new industrial area arose.

The GOELRO plan, designed for 10-15 years, provided for the construction of 30 regional power plants (20 thermal power plants and 10 hydroelectric power stations) with a total capacity of 1.75 million kW. Among others, it was planned to build Shterovskaya, Kashirskaya, Nizhny Novgorod, Shaturskaya and Chelyabinsk regional thermal power plants, as well as hydroelectric power stations - Nizhny Novgorod, Volkhovskaya (1926), Dnieper, two stations on the Svir River, etc. Within the framework of the project, economic zoning was carried out, transport and energy framework of the country's territory. The project covered eight main economic regions (Northern, Central Industrial, Southern, Volga, Ural, West Siberian, Caucasian and Turkestan). At the same time, the development of the country's transport system was carried out (transportation of old and construction of new railway lines, construction of the Volga-Don Canal).

The GOELRO project laid the foundation for industrialization in Russia.
The plan was largely exceeded by 1931.
Electricity production in 1932 compared to 1913 increased not 4.5 times, as planned, but almost 7 times: from 2 to 13.5 billion kWh.

Even... science fiction writers did not believe in the implementation of the plan!

GOELRO was so large-scale that the American English science fiction writer Herbert Wells, who visited Soviet Russia in 1920 and got acquainted with the plans... twirled his finger at his temple. Impossible - the science fiction writer gave a verdict.
“the implementation of such projects in Russia can only be imagined with the help of super imagination”

Lenin invited Wells to come in 10 years and see how the plan, which was designed for 10-15 years, was being implemented. Wells arrived in 1934 and was amazed that the plan was not only fulfilled, but also exceeded on a number of indicators.

GOELRO plan

GOELRO(abbreviated from Go state commission on el electrification Ro ssia listen)) - a body created to develop a project for the electrification of Russia after the October Revolution of 1917. The abbreviation is often deciphered as State plan for electrification of Russia, that is, the product of the GOELRO commission, which became the first long-term economic development plan adopted and implemented in Russia after the revolution. Starting point of the NEP

According to some sources, the preparation of a project for large-scale electrification of Russia was carried out even before the revolution, one of its ideologists was Professor Vernadsky, but before the Great October Socialist Revolution there was no interest in this project in Russia. During the years of the civil war and intervention, the government under the leadership of Lenin began to develop a long-term plan for the electrification of the country, for which, in particular, a Commission was created to develop an electrification plan under the leadership of Krzhizhanovsky. About 200 scientists and engineers were involved in the work of the commission. In December, the plan developed by the commission was approved by the VIII All-Russian Congress of Soviets, and a year later it was approved by the IX All-Russian Congress of Soviets.

GOELRO was a plan for the development of not just the energy sector, but the entire economy. It provided for the construction of enterprises that would provide these construction sites with everything necessary, as well as the rapid development of the electric power industry. And all this was tied to territorial development plans. Among them is the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, founded in 1927. As part of the plan, the development of the Kuznetsk coal basin also began, around which a new industrial area arose. The Soviet government encouraged the initiative of private owners in implementing GOELRO. Those involved in electrification could count on tax breaks and loans from the state.

The GOELRO plan, designed for 10-15 years, provided for the construction of 30 regional power plants (20 thermal power plants and 10 hydroelectric power stations) with a total capacity of 1.75 million kW. Among others, it was planned to build Shterovskaya, Kashirskaya, Gorky, Shaturskaya and Chelyabinsk regional thermal power plants, as well as hydroelectric power stations - Nizhegorodskaya, Volkhovskaya (1926), Dnieper, two stations on the Svir River, etc. Within the framework of the project, economic zoning was carried out, transport and energy framework of the country's territory. The project covered eight main economic regions (Northern, Central Industrial, Southern, Volga, Ural, West Siberian, Caucasian and Turkestan). At the same time, the development of the country's transport system was carried out (transportation of old and construction of new railway lines, construction of the Volga-Don Canal). The GOELRO project laid the foundation for industrialization in Russia. The plan was largely exceeded by . Electricity production in 1932 compared to 1913 increased not 4.5 times, as planned, but almost 7 times: from 2 to 13.5 billion kWh.

Members of the GOELRO Commission

Participants in the development of the GOELRO plan

Notes

see also

• Design of the Elektrosila metro station in St. Petersburg

Links

• GVOZDETSKY V. GOELRO PLAN. MYTHS AND REALITY // Science and life. - 2005. - № 5.
• Erlikhman V. The Age of Lighting // Energy of industrial growth. - M.: 2005. - No. 2.
• Summary information on the current state and plans for the development of generation in Russia. relevance - May 2008.

Wikimedia Foundation.

2010.

See what the “GOELRO Plan” is in other dictionaries: Plan, the first unified state long-term plan for the development of the national economy of the Soviet Union. republics based on the electrification of the country, developed in 1920 on the instructions and under the leadership of V.I. Lenin by the State Commission for ... ...

Great Soviet Encyclopedia

The request "Electrification of the Soviet Union" is redirected here; see also other meanings... Wikipedia The first long-term plan for the restoration and development of the people. x va Sov. countries based on electrification. The GOELRO plan was an integral part of the program for creating material and technical equipment. the basis of socialism put forward by V.I. Lenin in the first months after the victory... ...

Soviet historical encyclopedia GOELRO - single household plan prepared by the state. Commission on Electrification of Russia under the department. electrical engineering prom. VSNKh in 1920 under the leadership. G.M. Krzhizhanovsky. Following the organization of the Supreme Economic Council, the nationalization of industry. and transport, the question was raised about drawing up state... ...

Ural Historical Encyclopedia

February 21, 2010 marks 90 years since the State Commission for Electrification of Russia (GOELRO) was formed.

The State Commission for Electrification of Russia (GOELRO) is a body created on February 21, 1920 to develop a project for the electrification of Russia. The abbreviation also stands for the State Plan for the Electrification of Russia, that is, the product of the activities of the GOELRO Commission, which became the first long-term plan for the development of the economy of the USSR. GOELRO was headed by the Soviet statesman and party leader, energy scientist, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences Gleb Krzhizhanovsky.

According to some sources, preparations for a project for large-scale electrification of Russia began even before the revolution, and one of its ideologists was Professor Vernadsky.

About 200 specialists were involved in GOELRO activities. The commission, chaired by Gleb Krzhizhanovsky, included Russian science and technology figures: engineer Alexander Kogan, Professor Alexander Gorev, Professor Leonid Ramzin, Professor Karl Krug, Professor Mikhail Chatelain; Professor Grigory Dubelir, Professor Boris Ugrimov, Professor Alexander Ugrimov and others.

By the end of 1920, the commission prepared the “Electrification Plan of the RSFSR” - a volume of 650 pages of text with maps and diagrams of electrification of regions. The document was crowned by a specific program for the restoration and construction of power plants and power plants, which consisted of sections A - restoration and expansion of the capacity of existing facilities, and B - construction of regional power plants (centrals).

Separately, tasks were spelled out for the electrification of highways and key industrial facilities, and the document also included an enlarged project budget: 17 billion rubles.

On December 22, 1920, at the VIII All-Russian Congress of Soviets, Lenin, calling the GOELRO plan the second program of the party, put forward the formula “Communism is Soviet power plus electrification of the entire country.” After discussing technical and economic issues at the VIII Electrotechnical Congress in October 1921, the plan was approved by the Council of People's Commissars. This happened on December 21, 1921.

The GOELRO plan became the first state plan for the development of the national economy based on electrification. This plan, designed for 10-15 years, provided for the construction of 30 regional power plants (20 thermal power plants and 10 hydroelectric power stations) with a total capacity of 1.75 million kW. Among others, it was planned to build Shterovskaya, Kashirskaya, Gorky, Shaturskaya and Chelyabinsk regional thermal power plants, as well as hydroelectric power stations - Nizhny Novgorod, Volkhovskaya (1926), Dnieper, two stations on the Svir River, etc.

Along with the construction of power plants, the GOELRO plan provided for the construction of a network of high-voltage power lines. In 1922, the country's first power transmission line with a voltage of 110 kV was put into operation - the Kashirskaya State District Power Plant in Moscow, and in 1933 a more powerful line - 220 kV - the Nizhnesvirskaya Hydroelectric Power Station in Leningrad (St. Petersburg) was put into operation. The unification of the Gorky and Ivanovo power plants through the networks began, creating the energy system of the Urals.

As part of the project, economic zoning was carried out and the transport and energy framework of the country's territory was identified. The project covered eight main economic regions (Northern, Central Industrial, Southern, Volga, Ural, West Siberian, Caucasian and Turkestan). In parallel with electrification, the development of the country's transport system was carried out (transportation of old and construction of new railway lines, construction of the Volga-Don Canal).

By 1926, program “A” of the electrical construction plan was completed, by 1930 the main indicators of the GOELRO plan under program “B” were achieved. By the end of 1935, that is, by the 15th anniversary of the GOELRO plan, instead of the 30 planned, 40 regional power plants were built with a total capacity of 4.5 million kW. By that time, Russia had an extensive network of high-voltage power lines; six electrical systems with an annual capacity of over 1 billion kW/h operated in the country.

The country's overall industrialization indicators also significantly exceeded design targets, and in terms of industrial production the USSR came out on top in Europe and second in the world.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources