Communication system between Russian energy companies and the Indigenous peoples of the North

Energy Reports. 2023. Vol. 9. No. 9. P. 79–89.

Klepikov V. P., Klepikova L. V.

The regions of activity of energy companies are also the traditional areas of residence of the Indigenous peoples of the North (IPN). Commercial activities in these territories violate the environment and adversely impact the lives of the IPN. This study seeks to fill a gap regarding the position the IPN take while communicating with energy companies and the representative image the energy companies hold of the IPN. We consider the complex process of communication between oil companies and the IPN; the role assigned to the IPN in this process; the strategies adopted to preserve the IPN and why these strategies are prioritized; and the implications of the concept of “traditional life” of the IPN for each of the participants in the communication process. We analyzed the period 2010–2020 as it reflects the current situation.

We applied the hermeneutic method by comparing data from the reports of Gazprom, Lukoil, and Rosneft; analyzed documents related to the socio-economic development of the respective Russian regions; and used information from the official websites of organizations representing the interests of the IPN.

In the complex system of interaction between energy companies and the IPN, the latter, on the one hand, acts as a homogeneous unity, as differentiation between groups of people is rarely carried out. On the other hand, the interpretation of the identity of the IPN occurs through “traditional culture,” which is gradually equated to something that is worthy of a place in a museum. This trend is a matter of concern, as real socio-economic challenges run the risk of being overlooked in the process of musealization of Indigenous peoples. Rosneft, Gazprom and Lukoil communicate with IPN as with an ethnic unit, which considered to be preserved as an ethnic-cultural unit.

Keywords: communication, indigenous peoples of the North, Energy Companies, Complex system