Authorities in Russia’s republic of Sakha (Yakutia), one of the coldest inhabited places on Earth, are struggling to launch the heating season due to a lack of funding for utilities, the local media outlet LB Potok reported Monday.
The problems are affecting nearly all districts of the vast, sparsely populated region of the Far East, LB Potok reported.
The situation is most acute in the Verkhnekolymsky district, where snow fell on Tuesday but schools remain unheated. Boilers are operating on backup power, with heating provided for only a few hours in the evening.
In the settlement of Sangar in the Kobyaysky district, two boiler houses are shut down due to unpaid debts to local utility Sakhaenergo.
In the Ust-Aldansky district, the start of the heating season has been delayed by a week, while the Olenyok settlement declared a state of emergency on Sept. 4 amid cold weather, despite the season officially starting on Aug. 22.
Only a third of the required subsidies in the Aldansky district for coal purchases have arrived, leaving enough fuel to last until Nov. 1, local head Alexander Shestopalov said.
Authorities in the Churapchinsky district advised postponing heating until Oct. 1. Deputy head Rustam Dalinov proposed saving money by leaving cultural centers, gyms, administrative offices and other public buildings unheated.
Regional lawmaker Viktor Fyodorov said utility providers have been allocated 34.9 billion rubles ($374 million) for 2025, against actual needs of 63.1 billion ($746 million).
Sakha’s budget deficit reached 24.4 billion rubles ($288 million) in the first half of 2025 — nearly 10 times higher than planned, LB Potok reported.
At the same time, utility tariffs continue to rise.
Electricity prices increased by 16% from July 1, while heating and hot water rose by 13% and gas by 16%.
Meanwhile, Russia continues to export electricity. In the first half of 2025, exports totaled 3.08 billion kilowatt-hours, mainly to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, with Mongolia accounting for around 16% of deliveries.
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