Electrification of the young Socialist state was one of the many vitally important tasks that Lenin embarked on after the Revolution, and that was carried to admirable heights in the subsequent years.

On December 22, 1920, the VIII All-Russian Congress of Soviets opened, adopting a plan for the electrification of Russia – the GOELRO plan

The initiator and inspiration of the GOELRO plan was V.I.Lenin. To draw up the plan, On February 21st 1920, the State Commission for Electrification of Russia (GOELRO) was created. GOELRO, short for “State Electrification of Russia” was the plan for the development of not only the energy sector, but the entire economy. The commission included over 200 of the best Russian engineers and scientists, headed by G.M.Krzhizhanovsky.

By December 1920, the commission had completed its work. The Congress, held on December 22-29, 1920, approved the GOELRO plan. In his report to the congress, Lenin, calling the GOELRO plan the second program of the party, put forward a brilliant formula:

“Communism is Soviet power plus electrification of the entire country. Without an electrification plan, we cannot move on to real construction… Only when the country is electrified, when the technical base of modern large-scale industry is provided for industry, agriculture and transport, only then will we finally win.”

Lenin ended his historic speech to thunderous applause from the congress delegates with the following words:

“ …if Russia is covered with a dense network of electric stations and powerful technical equipment, then our economic communist construction will become a model for the future socialist Europe and Asia.”

The GOELRO plan was calculated for 10-15 years and provided for a radical reconstruction of the national economy based on electrification.
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