As Russian forces advance toward the city of Pokrovsk, Ukraine has suspended coking coal extraction from a major mine located nearby, Reuters reported on January 13, citing anonymous sources.
“All operations have stopped now,” one source told Reuters. Another source confirmed that the mine is no longer producing coal, and only surface work is ongoing.
The Pokrovsk coal mine, one of the largest in Eastern Europe, is situated about 10 kilometers (6 miles) west of the city. The mine is a key supplier of coal for coke production, which is crucial for Ukraine’s steelmaking industry. Steel is Ukraine’s second-largest export after agricultural products.
Owned by the steelmaker Metinvest BV, the Pokrovsk mine was the only one in Ukraine producing coking coal. The region, located in Donetsk Oblast, has seen intense fighting for months as Russia has focused its efforts on capturing the area, which is strategically important as a logistics hub for Ukrainian forces.
Trade data shows that Ukraine’s steel exports totaled nearly $2 billion in the first eight months of 2024. Experts had projected that Ukrainian steelmakers could produce up to 7.5 million metric tons of steel by the end of 2024, with plans to increase output to more than 10 million tons in 2025.
However, the loss of the Pokrovsk mine could drastically reduce steel production, potentially limiting output to just 2 to 3 million tons per year.
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