Mining turns to domestic market after being deprived of mining equipment imports - TMH

MOSCOW. June 24 (Interfax) - Russian mining companies, deprived of the supply of mining equipment from unfriendly countries due to sanctions, have turned to the domestic market. However, much of what is now in demand by local consumers is still to be designed, and it will take more than a year before deliveries begin, Kirill Lipa, head of Transmashholding (TMH), told Interfax in an interview.

"Almost all mining companies came to us because they were all cut off from supplies of machinery, fully quarry equipment. Energy companies, oil companies have all turned to us," Lipa said.

TMH specializes in rolling stock for rail transport. The company is ready to diversify its product line, but this will take time. "Many things need to be designed, and we still need to arrive at production. First, you have to learn how to design that machinery. Then, to design - you have to gather engineering competencies. We know how to make wheeled vehicles, but they don't have the functionality that these companies need," Lipa said.

"That's why today we are actively building up our engineering capacity, looking for understandable products that we can master, that are similar to our weight and size characteristics," the TMH chief said.

Furthrermore, we need to understand the economics of potential new projects, Lipa said. "But it's easier with that now because import prices have always been historically higher there, so there's economic potential there, but you have to learn how to do it. It's going to take time," he said.

Setting up new production that will at least yield a prototype will take a year and a half to two years, Lipa said.

TMH itself is looking for missing components on the domestic market in the same way. "If we have a shortage of some component, we start looking through all Russian companies that can at least tentatively, approximately, or in general terms potentially design, produce, or supply it," he said.