How the crisis is changing the coal industry: an overview of the round table
Conference Hall A hosted the round table "Strategic Guidelines for the Coal Industry in Turbulent Conditions", which brought together key industry experts. The discussion was moderated by Ksenia Klimko, Director and Head of the Marketing and Strategic Research Group at TeDo.
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The first report was made by Alexandra Zababurina, Director of the Infrastructure and Project Finance Practice at TeDo, who presented the topic "Dynamics and structural changes in the Russian coal industry". She summed up the results of 2025, outlined the key trends of the current situation in the coal market, and also highlighted the factors affecting the realization of the industry's potential in the context of the transformation of the global market. Among the areas that can ensure long-term sustainability, the development of deposits in the east of the country with a shorter transport leg to growing markets, as well as the optimization and digitalization of coal mining and enrichment processes, including to improve the quality characteristics of products, were highlighted.
Then Dmitry Shklyarov, Head of the Strategic Planning Department of SUEK, made a report "Tankers are standing – gondola cars are going: how the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz is restarting the economy of the Eastern Polygon". He stressed that even against the backdrop of rising coal prices provoked by the current Middle East crisis, for Russian coal miners, the significant effect of this growth is felt mainly in eastern ports. In this regard, the key factor in the implementation of the export potential remains the achievement of the design capacity of the Eastern Polygon.
Yuri Savvin, Director of Logistics and Commercial Supply Chain Management at OTEKO, made a presentation on "Supply Chains in Conditions of Uncertainty". He proposed to consider a long-term transformation of the demand structure and outlined the growing role of the Southern Sea Corridor as a promising route for access to markets in the Global South.
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Independent expert Alexander Malanichev spoke on the topic "Prospects for world markets of thermal and metallurgical coal". He presented a medium-term market forecast, compared the current price dynamics with previous expectations and outlined updated scenarios. Alexander drew attention to the fact that the deterioration of the macroeconomic background plays into the hands of coal. In his opinion, trade wars, conflict in the Middle East and a weakening dollar will lead to accelerated cost inflation and a slowdown in global economic growth, which traditionally raises prices for energy raw materials, including coal.
The session ended with a discussion of the social aspect of the coal industry. Oleg Koryashkin, Project Manager at KB Strelka, spoke about the transformation of coal single-industry towns. He noted the importance of diversifying the economy, developing the urban environment and preserving human capital. Of particular interest were successful and unsuccessful cases of organizing the life of coal single-industry towns after the shutdown of production.
The session was held in the format of a lively discussion and allowed the participants not only to exchange relevant data, but also to identify key areas for the development of the coal industry in conditions of high uncertainty.
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