An inconsistency has been present in statements made by president Vladimir Putin, the leader of the Russian Federation and his government, in the regards to renewable energy, and their role on the energy sector’s agenda. This inconsistency is the root of the title of my thesis - "Renewable energy under Putin: Why is he embracing RE through policy changes and sectorial development now?", and thus, the problem formulation is constructed in such a manner that I am able seek and answer "why are the Russian Federation, and in particular President Vladimir Putin now publicly stating the need to focus more on renewable energy sources when they previously distanced themselves for the possibility of renewables having a future in Russia?" The investigation of this, to a degree sudden and unexpected change is baselined around the theories of bureaucracy, as defined by Max Weber, then bureaucracy is the constant struggle to share and/or influence the distribution of power, either between different state, or between different groups within the same state (Beetham, 2013), as in this case. Therefore, the ultimate form of fragmentation is the appearance of divided authority in the very center of a bureaucratic institution (Alford & Friedland, 1985). The theory of authority, which “is the right to rule. Authority creates its own power so long as people accept that the person in authority has the right to make decisions” (Hague & Harrop, 2010, p. 12). And furthermore, the identification of the Russian Federation as being an illiberal democracy with authoritarian tendencies. This will be executed through a critical single-case study research design.