Russia mined 443.6 mln tonnes, exported 210.9 mln tonnes of coal in 2022 - Novak

MOSCOW. Feb 13 (Interfax) - Russia produced 443.6 million tonnes of coal in 2022, slightly more than in 2021, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in an article for the Energy Policy journal.

Coal exports fell 7.5% to 210.9 million tonnes, while supplies to the domestic market increased by 12.2% to 172.42 million tonnes, Novak said.

China and Russia continued to ramp up coal imports, the former by 11.2% to 59.52 million tonnes and the latter by 147.8% to 16.7 million tonnes.

"We expect coal exports to the Asia-Pacific region will rise 1.5-2-fold by 2030," Novak said.

The EU and Britain imposed an embargo on coal imports from Russia on August 10. The EU estimated half of its annual 8 billion euros of coal imports came from Russia.

New markets will have to be sought for around a third of Russian coal exports after the EU embargo on coal imports from Russia comes into effect and due to the halt in shipments to Ukraine, Deputy Energy Minister Sergei Mochalnikov said at Russian Energy Week 2022 in October.

Russian coal companies are forced to export coal at a discount of 50%-60% amid external restrictions, though they remain profitable even under these conditions, First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov said at the Made in Russia international export forum in October.

Russian coal exports grew 5.7% to 223 million tonnes in 2021, when the country produced 438.4 million rubles of coal. Exports to Europe rose 10.3% to 50.4 million tonnes or just over half the EU's entire imports. Russian coal exports to China rose 38% to 53 million tonnes.