Russia drops from third to fourth place among top thermal coal exporters
Russia cut its thermal coal exports by 18.6% in the first nine months of 2026, losing third place worldwide to South Africa. Losses in the industry are mounting, and some mines are idle.
Russia fell from third to fourth place among the world's leading thermal coal exporters in January–September 2026. Its exports shrank by 18.6% to 42.5 million tonnes, the steepest decline among the biggest suppliers, according to data from analytics firm BigMint cited by the Russian outlet The Insider. South Africa took over third place, increasing its exports by 8% to 52.1 million tonnes.
Global market
Compared with the same months of 2025, Russian shipments fell by almost 9.7 million tonnes. Global trade overall declined by 3.2% to 602.5 million tonnes, or roughly 19.9 million tonnes. Russia's drop accounts for about 49% of that global decline, and its market share slipped from 8.4% to 7.1%.
Indonesia remained the largest exporter with 240.3 million tonnes (−10%), while Australia kept second place with 151.2 million tonnes (+2%). Mongolia posted the biggest increase, raising shipments by 73% to 24 million tonnes.
Lost markets
Russia's heaviest losses came in Turkey and China: deliveries to Turkey fell 32% (to 15.7 million tonnes) and to China by 26% (to 15.1 million tonnes). India was the only growth destination, where significant discounts lifted shipments by 63% to 9.6 million tonnes, more than the volume for all of 2025.
The drop in demand is linked to a coal surplus in Chinese warehouses, lower consumption at Turkish power plants and competition from Mongolia. Additional pressure comes from higher rail transport costs, freight rates and ship insurance.
BigMint's statistics do not cover all Russian coal exports. According to Kpler, seaborne shipments of Russian coal of all grades over the same period rose by 7.25% to 135.86 million tonnes. The Insider attributes the discrepancy to differences in calculation methods and the product categories counted.
Financial state of the industry
According to Russia's statistics agency Rosstat, coal mining companies' net loss reached 178.2 billion rubles in January–July 2026, and 64.5% of enterprises were unprofitable. In Kuzbass, Russia's largest coal-producing region, 20 of 93 mines and open-pit sites were idle as of August. The industry's workforce shrank over the year from 103,000 to 97,300. Russia's Energy Ministry estimates the sector's losses in 2026 will reach 300–310 billion rubles.
