Coal imbalance: what happened to Donbas mines during the war
9 July 13:45
The 11 long years of war that came to the Ukrainian Donbas from Russia have generated a long list of losses. And the mines of Donbass are perhaps not the most important in this list, but they are definitely symbolic given the history of this mining region. "Komersant Ukrainian" found out how much and what the Ukrainian coal industry has lost over the years.
Unfortunately, it is too early to summarize this sad economic and financial balance of losses. But the data that has already been calculated makes it possible to imagine the scale of the losses.
Last year, the Kyiv School of Economics estimated the direct losses and indirect losses of Ukraine’s energy sector as a result of Russia’s full-scale invasion, said Dmytro Goryunov, head of the “Russia Will Pay” project at At KSE Institute.
“As of May 2024, the preliminary estimate of direct losses to the coal industry as a result of Russia’s full-scale invasion is $0.4 billion,” the expert said.
Mykhailo Volynets, MP, Chairman of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine, provides some more figures that give an idea of the scale of economic losses.
“In 2013, Ukraine produced over 83 million tons of coal. And in 2014, there were large losses, which amounted to 18 million tons – 65 million tons were produced then. In 2024, production amounted to 22 million 900 thousand tons of coal. And since the beginning of this year, it has been minus 4 million tons,” the parliamentarian emphasized.
According to the KSE Institute, about 60% of Ukraine’s coal deposits are temporarily occupied by Russian troops.
Donbas mines and hybrid warfare
Head of the project “Russia Will Pay”KSE Institute Dmytro Goryunov states that the main negative consequences for the coal industry were caused by Russia’s military aggression in 2014-2022, when most Ukrainian mines in the East of the country were occupied.
In mid-2015, the National Institute for Strategic Studies prepared an analytical note “Ukraine’s Coal Industry in the Hybrid War”, which stated that “the self-proclaimed administrations of the DPR and LPR control about a third of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and this relatively small territory was where almost half of all Ukrainian coal was mined, including almost 100% of anthracite”.
Mykhailo Volynets, MP, Chairman of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine, adds specifics to these conclusions.
“In Luhansk region, Ukraine has lost about one billion tons of coal reserves. These are unique P-grade (lean) coal and A-grade anthracites. Ukraine has also lost coking coal. In Luhansk Oblast, in Krasnodon, mines there used to produce coking coal. For example, the Rovenkyantratsyt association produced A-grade coal,” the MP explains.
According to the data of the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry, which was cited in 2015 in an analytical note of the National Institute for Strategic Studies, there were 85 mines of all forms of ownership in the uncontrolled territory of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
What is the status of these mines today? According to Dmytro Goryunov of the KSE Institute, coal mines that have been under occupation for 10 years are now in decline, with many of them already abandoned or in the process of liquidation.
In total, according to MP Mykhailo Volynets’ own estimates, about two dozen mines remain in operation.
Donbas mines and full-scale war
After February 24, 2022, Russia occupied several more coal mines in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Mykhailo Volynets, MP, Chairman of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine, provides a “by name” list of these losses.
“Since the beginning of the full-scale war, Lisichanskugol lost 4 mines, then Pervomayskugol lost 4 mines, Vuhledar lost 2 mines, Selidovo lost 4 mines, Toretsk lost 4 mines. That’s 18 in total. There are 3 more mines in Myrnohrad – there are battles there, we lost Krasnolimanska and Pokrovske mine administration,” the MP said.
Mykhailo Volynets also names mines whose loss is of strategic importance for the coal industry.
“If we take the full-scale wars from the very beginning, it is the Pokrovske mine administration. The Krasnolimanska mine near Pokrovsk is also a powerful mine, although it was looted after 2015 because it changed hands. As well as the Kapitalnaya mine. These mines had 100 million in balance sheet reserves. They could still work for a long time,” the MP emphasizes.
The recent shutdown of Ukraine’s largest coking coal mine, located near Pokrovsk, has received the most publicity. Mykhailo Volynets reminded us of its peculiarity.
“The situation is unique because the coal there had a sulfur content of 0.6. It meets international standards, because the global norm is 1% sulfur. And there is 0.6. There are no similar reserves in Europe,” the MP explained.
This coal is unique and key for the steel industry. That is, as Oleksandr Kalenkov, president of Ukrmetallurgprom, explained in an interview, the shutdown of the Pokrovsk mine means that Ukraine no longer has its own coking coal and must import it.
Donbas mines and the Ukrainian economy
Mykhailo Volynets, MP and head of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine, cites the following data.
“There are four mines left in Dobropillya. Three of them are owned by the state – Dobropillyavuhillya-Vydobuvannya. And one mine belongs to DTEK. That is four mines. And eight mines in Pavlohrad, as it was. There are seven mines in the Lviv-Volyn basin. That’s all there is,” the MP states.
He also emphasizes that the three state-owned mines of Dobropilliavuhillya are currently in a rather difficult situation.
“Firstly, they are without power as a result of shelling. Secondly, there is a shortage of people, and the quality of employees has changed. Unfortunately, people are desperate, they are afraid to live in the area close to the hostilities. So they move to other regions whenever possible. The only thing that holds them back is the availability of “armor” and the ability to feed their families. Another mine in Donetsk Oblast is Belozerskaya, owned by DTEK. Even they are experiencing a serious drop in production. And the main reason for this is not the power outage, but the lack of people and the quality of personnel,” the parliamentarian notes.
He also reminds that Pavlohradvuhillia operates eight mines and has produced more than seven million tons of coal since the beginning of the year.
Donbas mines and the environment
During the first months of the full-scale invasion, about 10 Ukrainian coal mines were flooded. This is the data provided by the Kyiv School of Economics, which estimated the direct losses and indirect losses of Ukraine’s energy sector. It is clear that this figure is not final. The logic of warfare forces us to blow up more than just bridges.
These newly flooded mines have added to a much longer list of similar coal enterprises that do not bode well for the Donbas environment. According to experts, the main threats caused by the flooding of the mines are the mineralization of groundwater and lakes, soil subsidence, and methane emissions.
Anastasia Bushovska, an expert on urban energy policy at the Center for Environmental Initiatives “Ecoaction”, continues.
“Any mine that is uncontrollably flooded poses a potential environmental hazard. Metals and their salts that are washed out of the rocks then get into the groundwater. In addition to contaminating groundwater and surface water, rock washout can cause subsidence and sinkholes in the ground, and can flood areas. In addition, methane is also a danger, as it can accumulate in coal mines and even come to the surface. This increases the risk of explosions. In addition, methane emissions have a much stronger impact on climate change than carbon dioxide,” says the expert.
There are even more dangerous flooded mines. Number 1 on this list is the Yunkom mine. It was there that a controlled underground nuclear explosion was carried out in 1979. Subsequently, operations at this mine were suspended, and the relevant workings were closed with a concrete contour. The territory where the mine is located has been occupied by Russians since 2014. In 2018, it became known that 26 mines located in the temporarily occupied territory were flooded. Yunkom is among them. Mykhailo Volynets, MP, Chairman of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine, continues.
“The Russians, referring to the conclusions of two of their institutes, then decided to put this mine into wet conservation mode, that is, to flood it. Now the mine is flooded. And the water has risen to 400 meters. And then the level stopped. Because this water goes through cracks into the tributaries of the Siverskyi Donets River. And then the contaminated radioactive water gets into the Don River and the Azov Sea. And from the Azov Sea to the Black Sea,” the MP states.
The questions of whether the “concrete sarcophagus” is damaged and whether this water is in direct contact with radioactive materials, making it even more dangerous, remain unanswered. There is no comprehensive data on this mine, as well as many others flooded in the temporarily occupied territory of Donbas.
Author: Serhiy Vasylovych
