Bratsk, industrial city in Irkutsk Oblast with population of 222,500, sits on the Angara River adjacent to massive Bratsk Reservoir created by one of world's largest hydroelectric dams. The city's rapid development commenced in 1952 when Soviet planners announced construction of massive dam and hydroelectric plant, transforming small settlement into major industrial center exemplifying Soviet-era development ambitions. The Bratsk Hydroelectric Power Station, completed 1954-1966, stands 125 meters high and 4,417 meters wide, creating reservoir holding 137 million acre-feet of water while generating 4,500 megawatts of electricity—the world's largest single power producer when commissioned in 1966. This enormous energy supply attracted aluminum smelters, lumber mills, pulp and paper factories, and chemical plants establishing Bratsk as major industrial center exploiting Siberian resources and cheap hydroelectric power.

Bratsk represents Soviet development model prioritizing industrial production, resource extraction, and planned cities built around single economic function. The population peaked around 260,000 in early 2010s before declining to current levels amid broader Siberian out-migration as young people seek opportunities in European Russia. The economy depends almost entirely on heavy industry including one of Russia's largest aluminum plants, timber processing, pulp production, and chemical manufacturing. Challenges include economic dependence on commodity prices creating boom-bust cycles, environmental degradation from industrial pollution, aging Soviet-era infrastructure requiring modernization, and brain drain depleting skilled workforce. Yet Bratsk maintains production capacities representing Siberian industrial base, Soviet-era engineering achievement in dam construction, and resource-extraction economy defining much of Russia's provincial development—massive projects transforming frontier landscapes into industrial zones whose fate depends on global commodity markets and Moscow's economic policies.