Copyright © 2021 Euromaidanpress.com

The work of Euromaidan Press is supported by the International Renaissance Foundation

When referencing our materials, please include an active hyperlink to the Euromaidan Press material and a maximum 500-character extract of the story. To reprint anything longer, written permission must be acquired from [email protected].

Privacy and Cookie Policies.

Miners’ Union: over half of the mines in Ukraine do not work

Article by: Anastasiya Moskvychova
Translated by: Mariya Shcherbinina
Kyiv – Over 80 coal mines are not functional in Donbas, seven of which are flooded already and another ten are being flooded at this time. According to the Independent Miners’ Union, coal is being accumulated on the territories under terrorist control, however, it cannot be transported even to the nearby thermal power plants. Meanwhile experts advise to take advantage of the coal crisis and use it to switch to other energy sources, and finally ‘lift up’ the miners from the earth. 

Over 40% of the industrial potential in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts has been destroyed as a result of combat, stated Petro Poroshenko during his visit to Lviv oblast. The coal industry is in a particularly difficult situation. The mines are being flooded due to danger of explosion caused by lack of electricity.

Throughout September, Ukraine has extracted half as much coal as it did during the same time last year, reports UNIAN citing the Trade Union of the Coal Mining Industry.

Out of 136 Ukrainian coal mines, about fifty are active today, 10 of which are in Dnipropetrovsk oblast and 10 in the Lviv-Volyn basin, however the main fuel for the thermal stations that use coal, anthracite, is extracted in Donbas, notes head of the Independent Coal Miners’ Union Mykhaylo Voronets.

“In Luhansk oblast, two coal mines work in the town of Lysychansk, eleven mines work in the town of Sverdlovsk and Rovenky, and another three work for the Pervomayskvuhillya union. And in Donetsk oblast, there are five active mines in the town of Dobropillya, in Krasnoarmiysk there are four, and five mines from Selydivvuhillya. Besides, the Krasnolymansk mine is now trying to start working, as well as the Zasyadko mine – from time to time, and another private mine in Krasnoarmiysk vuhillya works, though it belongs to a Russian oligarch,” says he.

Besides, according to the chairman of the miners’ union, the state cannot receive part of the fuel extracted earlier which had been paid for in advance. In particular, as Volynets notes, eleven DTEK mines, which are part of the finance-industrial union belonging to Rinat Akhmetov, started working at half-force in Luhansk oblast, as they are unable to export the fuel they’d extracted to the thermal power plant in Shchastya because of the ruined railways.

53 mines are on territories under separatist control. This was stated by the first deputy to the Minister for Energy Yury Ziukov, repots the ministry’s press service. According to him, almost ninety thousand miners may be left without work, as Ukraine is ready to only pay for the coal which is offloaded and used to satisfy the needs of Ukrainian energy.

Novak: the crisis in the East is a chance to reduce the subsidized coal industry

Even before combat, about one-third of mines in the region were unprofitable, this year the state approved a partial compensation for 14 billion UAH, says director of the analytics department of one of investment companies, Concorde Capital, Oleksandr Parashchiy. According to him, up to 180 thousand miners work for such mines.

The crisis in the East is a chance to reduce the coal industry, which is less needed in the 21st century, and “lift up the miners from the earth” by giving a different job, for example, employ them to rebuild the region, head of the Economists’ Committee of Ukraine Andriy Novak is convinced. To his mind, Ukraine should develop a long-term strategy.

“If we are to talk about the fastest alternative, for example, starting next year, it is nuclear energy, we don’t have a different alternative so far. Well, much slower, but just as effective, are renewable energy sources, however, it is a strategy issue, once again,” the economist thinks.

The government earlier talked about the intention to increase coal extraction from mines in Lviv oblast and Volyn and partially transition thermal power plants to using heavy oil and imported coal.

Translated by: Mariya Shcherbinina
You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this.  We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. A little bit goes a long way: for as little as the cost of one cup of coffee a month, you can help build bridges between Ukraine and the rest of the world, plus become a co-creator and vote for topics we should cover next. Become a patron or see other ways to support. Become a Patron!
Total
0
Shares
Related Posts

January 3: More military from the Russian Federation have been arriving in Luhansk region

Maidan Community Sector, Lviv: Dear friends!

January 3 – No Ukrainian military have died; one was wounded in the ATO area in the last 24 hours, – informed NSDC spokesman Andriy Lysenko.

January 3 – Russian Foreign Ministry has issued a statement that Foreign Ministers of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France insist on urgent meeting of the Contact Group to resolve the situation in Donbas.

January 3 – The lowest price for WTI and Brent oil in the last 5.5 years was recorded on Saturday.

January 3 – More military from the Russian Federation have been arriving in Luhansk region; attempts are being made to establish a single operations center over all terrorist groups of Luhansk region, – stated NSDC spokesman Andriy Lysenko – the National Security Council spokesman Andrei Lysenko.

January 3 – At night and in the morning the terrorists were attacking the positions held by "Azov" regiment near the village of Telmanove, attempting a breakthrough.

January 3 – One of the main priorities for 2015 is a high-principled, consistent and effective fight against corruption, – said the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko during his meeting with Giovanni Kessler, Director-General of European Anti-Fraud Office.

January 3 – Travel for citizens across frontline in the ATO area will be restricted significantly – 7 transport corridors will be created and all other transport ways will be blocked, stated NSDC Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov (similarly to Gaza and Israel). According to Turchynov, movement restrictions in the ATO area are being implemented in order to carry out comprehensive counter-terrorist activity. All vehicles and individuals will be meticulously checked.

January 3 – Part of the strategy of RF President Volodymyr Putin regarding the Ukrainian conflict is "unquestionably, also the attempt to influence public opinion in Russia itself, in Ukraine, and in Germany – including using the assistance of propaganda and the manipulation of thoughts."

This was stated by the Head of the Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Bundestag, the deputy from the Christian-Democratic Union, Norbert Rettgen, in an interview in the publication Tagesspiegel. In view of this, he urged all to be more careful in having to deal with such acts of Kremlin. "We in Germany, have not even begun a discussion regarding this propaganda, much less even to consider our reply," noted the Head of the Bundestag Committee. The German politician turned attention to the fact that journalists of the public tv-radio companies of the Federal Republic of Germany, "who work on the materials from Eastern Ukraine and directly talk about the participation of Russia in events there", are under enormous pressure. This needs to be talked about, believes Rettgen. "When there exists an awareness of this hidden, organized influence on public thought, it ceases to attain its function," said he.

Savchenko on day 21 of hunger strike

P.S.: Please spread this appeal as much as possible.