A growing deficit of coal in Ukraine

On 22 October 2014, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said that by the end of 2014 Ukraine will be 4 million tons short of coal. The deficit stems from the fact that 88 of the 93 Ukrainian mines operating in Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts, which together account for 70% of domestic production, are located in areas controlled by the militants. As a result of the war, 69 mines in the Donbas have ceased activity, and several have been destroyed. Even those mines still operating are having problems making deliveries to Ukrainian power plants due to damaged railway lines. As a result, coal production in September fell by 51% compared to the same month last year, and Ukrainian power stations are starting to feel the lack of fuel more acutely.

In September 2014, electricity production fell by 13.7%. An even greater decrease in power is being prevented by stockpiles of coal at the power stations, but these are shrinking rapidly. At the beginning of October they amounted to 1.93 million tons, including 0.49 million tons of high-grade coal, while in the same period last year stocks amounted to 4.37 million tonnes.