РОССИЙСКИЙ УГОЛЬНЫЙ СЕКТОР В НИЗКОУГЛЕРОДНОМ МИРЕ: Перспективы отказа от угля

The Russian coal sector provides a low economic contribution to the national GDP but maintains high social and political significance, particularly in regions like Kuzbass. Despite this, the sector is heavily reliant on indirect state subsidies and faces a deteriorating infrastructure, with the average age of coal power plants reaching 53 years. The report highlights a disconnect between the Russian government's expectations of export growth and the reality of decarbonization trends in key markets such as the EU, China, and India. It argues that Russia lacks an official decarbonization scenario and that conservative views currently dominate policy, ignoring the risks of stranded assets and the impact of the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). The authors propose a 'just transition' framework consisting of social programs for workers, regional economic diversification, and the introduction of an internal carbon price.

• The coal sector's contribution to the Russian economy is minimal compared to its environmental impact; in 2020, its share of GDP was estimated at 1%, while in 2018, coal mining and combustion accounted for 21.6% of domestic greenhouse gas emissions.
• Russian coal infrastructure is severely aged, with the average age of coal power plants exceeding 25 MW being 53 years, which far exceeds the typical 35-year design life of steam turbines.
• The sector is sustained by significant indirect federal subsidies, including tax exemptions in the Far East and cross-subsidized railway tariffs where other industrial goods pay higher rates to cover coal transport losses, totaling approximately 200 billion rubles annually.
• There is a stark contrast between the Russian government's goal to increase coal production to 485-668 million tons by 2035 and the actual trend of declining demand in major importing regions like the EU and Southeast Asia.
• Russia lacks an official national decarbonization scenario, and current climate policy is dominated by conservative views that resist carbon pricing and internal emissions trading systems.
• The EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is expected to reduce the competitiveness of Russian carbon-intensive exports, including steel, aluminum, and electricity, by taxing greenhouse gas emissions at the border.
• Coal mining has led to severe public health crises in the Kuzbass region, where the mortality rate for the working-age population was 46% higher than the national average in 2018, sparking over 50 protests since 2015.

APA

Корппоо, А., Ланьшина, Т., Сливяк, В., Ломагин, Н., Титов, М., Сафонов, Г., & Блахович, А. (2021). РОССИЙСКИЙ УГОЛЬНЫЙ СЕКТОР В НИЗКОУГЛЕРОДНОМ МИРЕ: Перспективы отказа от угля. Climate Strategies. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/CS_Final-Report-Russian-Coal-Russian_DEF.pdf

Chicago

Корппоо, Анна, Татьяна Ланьшина, Владимир Сливяк, Никита Ломагин, Максим Титов, Георгий Сафонов, and Анджей Блахович. РОССИЙСКИЙ УГОЛЬНЫЙ СЕКТОР В НИЗКОУГЛЕРОДНОМ МИРЕ: Перспективы отказа от угля. Climate Strategies, 2021. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/CS_Final-Report-Russian-Coal-Russian_DEF.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Корппоо |first1=Анна |last2=Ланьшина |first2=Татьяна |last3=Сливяк |first3=Владимир |last4=Ломагин |first4=Никита |last5=Титов |first5=Максим |last6=Сафонов |first6=Георгий |last7=Блахович |first7=Анджей |title=РОССИЙСКИЙ УГОЛЬНЫЙ СЕКТОР В НИЗКОУГЛЕРОДНОМ МИРЕ: Перспективы отказа от угля |publisher=Climate Strategies |date=September 2021 |url=https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/CS_Final-Report-Russian-Coal-Russian_DEF.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{2021, author = {Корппоо, Анна and Ланьшина, Татьяна and Сливяк, Владимир and Ломагин, Никита and Титов, Максим and Сафонов, Георгий and Блахович, Анджей}, title = {{РОССИЙСКИЙ УГОЛЬНЫЙ СЕКТОР В НИЗКОУГЛЕРОДНОМ МИРЕ: Перспективы отказа от угля}}, institution = {Climate Strategies}, year = {2021}, month = sep, url = {https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/CS_Final-Report-Russian-Coal-Russian_DEF.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }