Legal Regulation of Unitary Enterprises in the Sphere of Energy by the Example of the Republic of Belarus

In the Republic of Belarus, state unitary enterprises hold the leading position in the energy sector, which has a certain influence on the performance of such enterprises. The relevance of the chosen topic lies in the long-pending revision of the form of incorporation of a legal entity operating as a unitary enterprise both in the electric power industry and in all other sectors of the economy in general. The purpose of the study is to investigate the legal regulation of the activities of unitary enterprises in the energy sector with the subsequent development of proposals for reforming such enterprises in the public sector. The article deals with the historical aspect of the emergence of unitary enterprises, their modern legal regulation in the Republic of Belarus, and also examines the special features of the activities of the largest state-owned enterprises in the energy sector. Having conducted a comparative analysis of national and foreign experience, the author concludes that the creation of unitary enterprises in the energy sector is unsuitable due to the negative aspects identified. These aspects include the lack of opportunity to attract investments and expand an enterprise’s material base through third-party funds, and the management structure of unitary enterprises (a traditional functional type of organizational structure with hierarchical management, which is headed by government officials). The question arises about the need to reform unitary enterprises in the energy sector. Having studied the experience of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Uzbekistan, specific actions are proposed to create a legal framework for regulating the countrys energy sector with the aim of creating a competitive energy market and fertile ground for the development of efficient energy enterprises independent in making business decisions.