Russia Falls to Fourth Place Among Thermal Coal Exporters

Russia has slipped from third to fourth place among the world's leading thermal coal suppliers, after cutting exports by 18.6% in January–September 2026, The Insider reported, citing data from the analytics company BigMint.

In nine months Russian thermal coal exports fell to 42.5 million tonnes, the steepest drop among the largest suppliers. As a result Russia gave up third place to South Africa, which raised exports by 8% to 52.1 million tonnes. In absolute terms Russian shipments fell by almost 9.7 million tonnes year on year, The Insider calculated, while total world trade declined 3.2% to 602.5 million tonnes, about 19.9 million tonnes. The Russian decline thus accounts for roughly 49% of the global drop, and Russia's share of this segment fell from 8.4% to 7.1%.

Who gained and who lost

Indonesia remained the leader with 240.3 million tonnes (-10%), Australia kept second place with 151.2 million tonnes (+2%), and Mongolia posted the biggest gain, raising shipments by 73% to 24 million tonnes. Russia's heaviest losses were in Turkey and China: supplies to Turkey fell 32% to 15.7 million tonnes, and to China 26% to 15.1 million tonnes. India was the only growth destination: thanks to large discounts, deliveries rose 63% to 9.6 million tonnes, more than in all of 2025.

The demand slump is linked to a coal glut in Chinese warehouses, lower consumption at Turkish power plants and competition from Mongolia. Rising costs for rail transport, freight and ship insurance add pressure on Russian exporters.

A caveat on the data

BigMint statistics do not cover all Russian coal exports. According to Kpler, seaborne shipments of Russian coal of all grades over the same period actually rose 7.25% to 135.86 million tonnes. The Insider attributes the gap to differences in methodology and the product categories counted.

Sales problems have triggered a financial crisis in Russia's coal industry. According to Rosstat, the net loss of coal-mining companies reached 178.2 billion roubles in January–July 2026, with 64.5% of companies loss-making. In Kuzbass, the largest coal-mining region, 20 of 93 mines and open pits were idle as of August 2026, and industry employment fell over the year from 103,000 to 97,300. Russia's Energy Ministry estimates the industry's 2026 losses at 300–310 billion roubles. More in Business.