The status of the Russian coal industry and its prospects in the period to 2030

Journal article

Russia is currently the sixth coal producer in the world after China, the USA, India, Indonesia, and Australia. Industrial reserves of Russia’s currently operating coal enterprises are around 19 billion tonnes (more than 550 years’ production at the current level); this figure includes coking coal reserves of around 4 billion tonnes.

In 2013, coal production volumes amounted to 352 million tonnes (representing growth of 36.2 per cent compared to 2000, when 258.5 million tonnes was produced). In 2013, coking coal accounted for 22 per cent of the total and thermal coal for the remainder. The growth of coking coal production in Russia in 2013 compared to 2000 was 29.7 per cent, while for thermal coal it was 38.2 per cent.

Around 70 per cent of coal in Russia (71 per cent in 2013) is produced by opencast mining, with the remaining 30 per cent from subsurface mining. There are 22 coal basins and 129 separate coalfields in operation; most production is in the Kuznetsk Basin, East Siberia, and the Far East.

Authors: Plakitkina, L

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Oxford Institute for Energy Studies
• Journal: Oxford Energy Forum
• Volume: 97
• Pages: 26-29
• Publication date: 2014-09-22
• ISSN: 0959-7727
• Language: English
• Keywords: OIES