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Coal in Ukraine

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Samarska Coal Mine, near Ternivka

Coal mining has historically been an important industry in Ukraine.[1][2] Coal mining in Ukraine is often associated with coal-rich Donets basin. However this is not the only coal mining region, other being Lviv-Volhynian basin and Dnieper brown coal mining basin. The Donets basin located in the eastern Ukraine is the most developed and much bigger coal mining region in the country.

Ukraine was until recently, the third largest coal producer in Europe.[3] In 1976, national production was 218 million metric tonnes. By 2016, production had dropped to 41 million metric tonnes. The Donets Black Coal Basin in the eastern Ukraine, with 90% of the nation's reserves, suffers from three connected problems: (1) mines are not profitable enough to sustain capital investment, resulting in aging mining equipment and processes, (2) the government, taking advice from the International Monetary Fund, has discontinued $600 million annual mining subsidies, and (3) the Ukrainian government refuses to buy from mines controlled by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic.

Almost all the country’s coal-fired power plants were destroyed in the Russo-Ukrainian war.[4]

History

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A 1921 Russian poster, with the caption Donbass is the heart of Russia

Coal mining began in Ukraine in 1870. In 1913, Donetz produced 87% of the coal in the Russian Empire. It produced 50% of the metallurgical coal of the USSR. Like other Soviet enterprises, coal companies provided social facilities including schools and hospitals

Coal reserves

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Ukraine's coal reserves are estimated at 60 billion tonnes, of which 23 billion are proven and probable, and 10 billion tonnes are economically extractable.[5][6] According to the Ukrainian mining trade union, coal constitutes 95% of Ukraine's domestic energy resources.[7]

Ninety percent of Ukraine's coal reserves are located in the Donets Coalfield (easternmost part of the country).[5] Control of this portion of the country is disputed. Russian-backed rebels claim sovereignty over the region. Mid-March 2017 Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree on a temporary ban on the movement of goods to and from territory controlled by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic meaning that since then Ukraine does not buy coal from the Donets Black Coal Basin.[8]

Two other coalfields include one in the northwest, the Lviv-Volhynian Coalfield, between Lviv and Volodymyr-Volynskyi.[5] Another, the Dnieper Coalfield in central Ukraine, offers lignite (brown coal), but the mining of lignite stalled in the 1990s.

Coal mining

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Coal production in Ukraine, million tonnes[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]
Year 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869
Coal, millions of tonnes na 0.1↑ na na na na na na na na
Year 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879
Coal, millions of tonnes na na na na na na na na na na
Year 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889
Coal millions of tonnes 1.3↑ 1.4↑ 1.6↑ 1.6↑ na na na na na na
Year 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899
Coal, millions of tonnes 2.9↑ na na na na na na na na na
Year 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909
Coal, millions of tonnes 11.3↑ na na na na na na na na na
Year 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
Coal, millions of tonnes 16.3↑ na na 22.5↑ 24.0↑ 23.0↓ 24.5↑ 22.0↓ 6.3↓ 4.5↓
Year 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
Coal, millions of tonnes 4.0↓ 4.0↓ 6.0↑ 7.0↑ 11.3↑ 11.3↑ 18.3↑ 22.0↑ 22.5↑ 25.0↑
Year 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
Coal, millions of tonnes 33.0↑ 36.7↑ 41.2↑ 44.0↑ 53.0↑ 59.8↑ 67.0↑ 67.2↑ 69.3↑ 70.9↑
Year 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
Coal, millions of tonnes 76.2↑ 57.2↓ 2.2↓ 2.6↑ 16.3↑ 30.3↑ 37.5↑ 45.0↑ 54.9↑ 65.0↑
Year 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Coal, millions of tonnes 78.0↑ 81.2↑ 88.8↑ 95.6↑ 104.6↑ 120.3↑ 132.6↑ 152.1↑ 164.2↑ 167.3↑
Year 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
Coal, millions of tonnes 172.1↑ 171.4↓ 175.1↑ 179.7↑ 187.1↑ 194.3↑ 196.4↑ 199.0↑ 200.4↑ 204.4↑
Year 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Coal, millions of tonnes 207.1↑ 209.4↑ 211.2↑ 212.6↑ 213.7↑ 215.7↑ 218.2↑ 217.1↓ 210.9↓ 204.7↓
Year 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
Coal, millions of tonnes 197.1↓ 191.1↓ 194.1↑ 190.9↓ 190.8↓ 189.0↓ 193.0↑ 192.0↓ 191.7↓ 180.2↓
Year 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Coal, millions of tonnes 164.8↓ 135.6↓ 133.6↓ 115.7↓ 94.4↓ 83.6↓ 74.8↓ 75.6↑ 76.2↑ 81.1↑
Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Coal, millions of tonnes 80.3↓ 83.4↑ 81.9↓ 79.3↓ 80.2↑ 78.0↓ 80.3↑ 75.5↓ 77.7↑ 72.2↓
Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014* 2015* 2016* 2017 2018 2019
Coal, millions of tonnes 75.2↑ 81.9↑ 85.7↑ 83.7↓ 64.9↓ 39.7↓ 40.9↑ — — —

n.b.: 2014, 2015, and 2016 do not include extraction in the territory occupied by the separatists.

In July 2014, several mines were closed in Eastern Ukraine because of fighting during the 2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine.[17] Because of this War in Donbass (according to the Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Ministry) raw coal production in Ukraine dropped by 22.4% from 2013, to 64.976 million tonnes.[18] As a result, Ukraine begun importing power-generating coal from South Africa and Russia.[18][19] Lack of coal for Ukraine's coal-fired power stations and a shut down of one of the six reactors of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant lead to rolling blackouts throughout the country from early till late December 2014.[20]

Consumption, import and export

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Part of a series on
Coal
Economic use
Externalities
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Coal consumption in 2012 grew to 61.207 million tonnes, up 6.2% compared with 2011.[21] Most is used for public utilities and for power generation.[5] However local coal only provides 50% of the country’s electricity needs, therefore requiring Ukraine to import from Russia and Poland.[5]

As of 2013, the Ukrainian government plans to completely replace the natural gas used in the steel industry and some other economic sectors with coal.[21]

Coal powered 38% of Ukrainian electrical generation in 2014.[22] The relative cost of domestic coal versus imported coal, nuclear and gas, made it unworkable. In 2016, the nation imported 15.648 million tonnes of coal and anthracite worth of $1.467 billion.[23] In the year before the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War, 2013, Ukraine exported 500 thousand tonnes and imported 25 million tonnes.[24] In 2016, Ukraine exported 520,585 tonnes of coal and anthracite worth of $44.762 million.

In 2019, Ukraine produced the highest amount of PM10 particulates and sulfur dioxide air pollution emissions in Europe from coal fired electricity generation. None of Ukraine's power plants have desulfurization equipment other than a small trial plant on unit 2 of Trypilska thermal power plant.[25]

In June 2020, the Government of Ukraine prioritized the usage of coal at Ukrainian power stations to reduce the import of natural gas used at the power stations for electricity production.[26][27]

Mine safety

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See also: 2008 Ukraine coal mine collapse

Mine safety is the result of geology and human factors. The geology of Ukrainian coal mines is not favorable: seam thickness is small, seams are deep, and methane is common.[6] The coal mines of Donbas are one of the most hazardous in the world due to enormous working depths (down from 300 to 1200 m) as a result of natural depletion, as well as due to high levels of methane explosion, coal dust explosion and rock burst dangers. As the Economic Review points out, "Since 1991, up to 300 [miners] have died at work every year".[28][29]

Low profitability of Ukrainian mines has not attracted capital investment. As a result, the machinery and the processes used to dig coal are twenty years old. These methods are less safe on a per-miner basis and require more miners.[6]

The Zasyadko Mine stands as an example of Donbass mine safety. It was opened in 1958 and privatized in 1992, since which time it has had seven major accidents, including the 2007 Zasyadko mine disaster (101 workers killed)[30] and the 2015 Zasyadko mine disaster (17 killed).[31]

Corruption and illegal mining

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Ukrainian mines are sometimes run by mafia-like organizations. Often, these organizations derive large incomes from the mines that belong to the government. As a result, underfinancing causes many employees to have to wait to receive their monthly salary for weeks or even months. Additionally, a lack of financing influences the condition of many coal mines. Old mines don’t receive the necessary financial aid, therefore they are not being renovated or remodeled annually. All these problems together with other challenges have resulted in "gradually declining production capacity and a loss of global market share".[32]

In the Donets Basin there are many extremely dangerous illegal mines.[7][33]

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Photos: How war has devastated Ukraine's coal industry". CNN. 6 February 2022. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  2. ^ Білецький В. С. Гайко Г.І, ;Нарис історії гірництва в Україні. К.: ТОВ Видавничий дім «Києво-Могилянська академія». 2022. — 194 с.
  3. ^ Vorutnikov, Vladislav (May 25, 2015). "Ukrainian Coal: An Industry Divided". Coal Age. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  4. ^ "Half Ukraine's power is knocked out; winter is coming". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2024-07-16.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Ukraine - Mining: Coal Mining". Archived from the original on 2015-10-17. Retrieved 2013-08-30.
  6. ^ a b c Ukraine Coal Industry Restructuring Sector Report (PDF). World Bank. March 4, 1996. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  7. ^ a b "The coal-mining racket threatening Ukraine's economy". BBC News. April 23, 2013. Retrieved April 24, 2013.
  8. ^ Ukrainian energy industry: thorny road of reform, UNIAN (10 January 2018)
  9. ^ ПРОМИСЛОВИЙ ПЕРЕВОРОТ ТА ОСОБЛИВОСТІ СТАНОВЛЕННЯ ІНДУСТРІАЛЬНОГО СУСПІЛЬСТВА В УКРАЇНІ
  10. ^ ДИНАМІКА РОЗВИТКУ ГІРНИЧОЇ І МЕТАЛУРГІЙНОЇ ПРОМИСЛОВОСТИ НАДДНІПРЯНСЬКОЇ УКРАЇНИ
  11. ^ ВУГІ́ЛЬНА ПРОМИСЛО́ВІСТЬ
  12. ^ У 2006 році Україна збільшила видобуток вугілля
  13. ^ Видобуток вугілля в Україні в 2011 р. збільшився на 8,9%
  14. ^ В Україні видобуток вугілля за рік скоротився на 2,6%
  15. ^ ЕНЕРГЕТИЧНА ГАЛУЗЬ УКРАЇНИ: ПІДСУМКИ 2015 РОКУ
  16. ^ Видобуток вугілля в Україні зріс до 41 мільйона тонн
  17. ^ Four miners killed, 16 injured after artillery shell hits bus in Chervonopartyzansk - DTEK, Interfax-Ukraine (11 July 2014)
  18. ^ a b Coal output in Ukraine declines 22.4% in 2014, Kyiv Post (Jan. 8, 2015)
  19. ^ Ukraine pays for two more vessels carrying coal from South Africa – energy minister, Interfax-Ukraine (8 January 2015)
    Ukraine to Import Coal From ‘Far Away’ as War Curtails Mines, Bloomberg News (Dec 31, 2014)
    Batch of South African coal supplied to Ukraine, UNIAN (04.08.2015)
  20. ^ Ukraine turns off reactor at its most powerful nuclear plant after 'accident', The Independent (28 December 2014)
    Ukraine Briefly Cuts Power to Crimea Amid Feud With Russia Over NATO, The New York Times (DEC. 24, 2014)
    Coal import to help avoid rolling blackouts in Ukraine — energy minister, ITAR-TASS (December 31, 2014)
    Rolling blackouts in Ukraine after nuclear plant accident, br>Mashable (Dec 03, 2014)
    Ukraine to Import Coal From ‘Far Away’ as War Curtails Mines, Bloomberg News (Dec 31, 2014)
  21. ^ a b Ukraine plans to reach extraction of 105 m t of coal a year, says president, Interfax-Ukraine (30 August 2013) "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 April 2020. Retrieved 24 July 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  22. ^ "Poroshenko: Share of nuclear power grows to 60% amid blockade of trade with Donbas". UNIAN. 16 February 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
  23. ^ Ukraine imports 15.6 mln tonnes of coal for $1.5 bln in 2016, Interfax-Ukraine (6 January 2017)
  24. ^ (in Russian) Production of coking coal in Ukraine fell to the lowest since independence, UNIAN (14 February 2014)
  25. ^ Alparslan, Ufuk (25 May 2021). "Coal power air pollution in Europe". Ember. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  26. ^ Олександра, Автор: Панченко (2020-06-25). "Кабмін зробив вугілля основним паливом для українських ТЕЦ". Хмарочос (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2020-06-27.
  27. ^ "Кабмін надав ТЕС на вугіллі пріоритетну диспетчеризацію". LIGA. 2020-06-23. Retrieved 2020-06-27.
  28. ^ Grumau, S. (2002). Coal mining in Ukraine. Economic Review.44.
  29. ^ Ukraine mine blast leaves 16 dead, BBC News (29 July 2011)
  30. ^ "The miner, hospitalized after the accident at the mine Zasyadko, died" (in Ukrainian). Korrespondent. November 30, 2007. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  31. ^ Ukraine gas blast: 30 feared dead in Zasyadko coal mine BBC News
  32. ^ A short history of factors in the Ukraine. Coal International. (2010).[verification needed]
  33. ^ Illegal mines profitable, but at massive cost to nation, Kyiv Post (8 July 2011)
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