270,000 tons of Donbas coal exported from Russia in July
In July 2017, about 267,000 tons of coal mined in the separatist-held territories of eastern Ukraine were exported to European countries from Russia, reported LIGA.net citing Russian Railway and Russian Federal Customs Service data.
The largest exporter of Ukrainian coal was Gaz-Alyans, controlled by Serhiy Kurchenko. In July, more than 50,000 tons of anthracite were exported from the Russia’s ports. The entire quantity was exported by the South Ossetian company Vneshtorgservis JSC, and was subsequently trenferred to Gaz-Alyans.
Another of Kurchenko’s companies, Petroleum Capital, exported 32,000 tons of coal from Russia, originally taken from the Donbas. The identities of the coal’s buyers could not be established.
The company Russian Anthracite exported roughly 34,000 tons of anthracite. Virtually the entire amount was shipped to Hong Kong-based Grecoal Ltd., controlled by the brothers Oleksandr and Serhiy Melnychuk.
Coal Technologies Ltd., another company co-owned by Oleksandr Melnychuk, exported around 15,000 tons of anthracite in July.
Yorkland Merchants Ltd. (registered in Hong Kong in October 2016) was shipped more than 29,000 tons of Ukrainian anthracite in July. Of this amount, 9 tons were shipped to the offshore company by Russian Railways Logistics.
The Russian Anthracite Trading House, which is under Ukrainian sanctions, exported more than 31,000 tons of coal from Russia. The entire quantity was shipped to Carbon and Natural Resources Corp. Ltd. The Anthracite Trading House is registered to Rostov province resident Alexander Nosko.
Since July, Vneshtorgservis JSC has stopped appearing on Russian Railways invoices as an importer of coal from the separatist-held territories. Nevertheless, the company still ships coking coal and iron ore to the occupied Donbas territories and exports prepared metal products.
As the article notes, more than 70% of all the coal illegally taken from the Donbas regions into Russia is later exported by two companies associated with the brothers Oleksandr and Serhiy Melnychuk. The former works in the LPR (Luhansk People’s Republic) as “deputy minister of energy”, and the latter legally trades coal in Ukraine.
In 2016, roughly 940,000 tons of anthracite, worth $36 million, were exported from occupied territories into Russia, and a further 95,000 tons of other grades of coal, worth $8 million.
As reported, Russian Federal Customs Service statistics contained information on the delivery of anthracite from the DPR (Donetsk People’s Republic) and LPR. In May 2017, 58,652 tons of anthracite were brought to the Rostov province of Russia from Ukraine, and 236,568 tons between January and May.