Ukraine stopped the production of coal in Pokrovsk because of the approach of Russian troops - Reuters

Mine in Pokrovsk is the only place for coking coal production in Ukraine, which is necessary for the steel industry that has fallen after a full -scale invasion of Russia in February 2022, journalists said. According to the Ukrainian analytical blog Deepstate, Russian troops are now less than two kilometers from one of the mines. "Now they have stopped working," one of the sources said.

"There is no mining, they only work on the surface," - informed the second source, adding that evacuation is now being carried out. The metallurgical company Metinvest BV, which owns the mine, has not yet commented on the situation. In December, the company has already partially stopped its activity on this facility. In 2023, Ukraine produced about 3. 5 million tons of coke, which was fully used for coal from Pokrovsk mine.

Last year, the Metallurgical Union stated that the potential closure of the mine could lead to a fall in steel production from 7. 6 million tons in 2024 to 2-3 million tons in 2025. Metallurgy, once a powerful sector of the Ukrainian economy, has already suffered from large -scale destruction of leading factories. In 2022, steel production fell by 70. 7% - up to 6. 3 million tons, and in 2023 it decreased even more - up to 6 million tons. In 2024, exports of metals brought Ukraine almost $ 4. 4 billion.

Manufacturers have said they hope to find alternative sources of coking coal from other regions of Ukraine, if the mine in Pokrovsk is captured by Russian troops, but imports will inevitably need to lead to an increase in costs. We will remind, on January 10 told the head of Pokrovskaya MVA Sergey Dobryak stated that the critical infrastructure in Pokrovsk "destroyed completely". The security situation in the city is worsening every day.