Standard-bearer of Soviet electrification who became wartime power minister at 35
When Beria drew his pistol on the head of Mosenergo after the 1948 Moscow blackout, Zhimerin stepped in front of him and said: 'Shoot — he is not to blame!'
A central figure in Soviet electrification, appointed People's Commissar of Power Stations in 1942 at age 35, directing the evacuation and restoration of power plants during World War II. During the 1948 Moscow blackout he shielded a subordinate from Beria's pistol threats, and under Khrushchev's 1955 Gosplan-split reform he served as first deputy chairman during the transition to separate long-term and current planning systems. After retiring he directed the Krzhizhanovsky Energy Institute and served as first deputy chairman of the State Committee for Science and Technology, helping institutionalize Soviet energy science and producing the standard history of Soviet electrification.
Career Timeline
- 1939–1940Chief engineer, then head of Main Administration for Power Stations and Grids (South)
- 1940–1941First Deputy People's Commissar of Power Stations
- 1942–1953People's Commissar, then Minister of Power Stations
- 1954–1955First Deputy Chairman, Bureau for Chemistry and Energy, USSR Council of Ministers
- 1955–1957First Deputy Chairman of Gosplan (during long-term/current planning split)
- 1964–1971Director, Krzhizhanovsky State Energy Research Institute (ENIN)
- 1971–1983First Deputy Chairman, State Committee for Science and Technology
The 1948 Moscow Blackout and Confrontation with Beria
On the evening of 18 December 1948, a cascading failure cut all power to Moscow. Transport halted and even the Kremlin lost electricity. Zhimerin rushed to the central control room of Mosenergo on Raushskaya Embankment.
Lavrenty Beria arrived shortly after. Beria, shouting, demanded to know who was responsible. Zhimerin shot back: 'Why didn't your organs activate the Kremlin's backup power system?', turning the threat back on Beria.
The next day Beria summoned Mosenergo chief Mikhail Ufaev to his office, drew his pistol, and threatened to shoot him dead. Zhimerin stepped in front of Ufaev, shielding him with his own body, and said to Beria's face: 'Shoot. He is not to blame!'
The standoff became legendary among senior Stalin-era officials. Zhimerin was the only minister who physically shielded a subordinate from the chief of the secret police. The accident was traced to a technical insulation fault at a substation, and Beria ultimately lowered his gun.