Yakutia raises coal exports by 43%

The Sakha Republic (Yakutia) increased its coal exports by 43% in January–August 2026, to 28 million tonnes from 19.6 million tonnes in the same period of 2025. Head of the republic Aisen Nikolaev announced the figures at the international forum Russian Energy Week.

Nikolaev said the rise is mainly linked to the Pacific railway starting to work seriously in practice. In January–August 2026, 17.8 million tonnes were shipped via the Russian Railways network and 10.2 million tonnes via the Pacific railway. The line is designed for 30 million tonnes, but modernisation is under way to raise capacity to 50 million tonnes, and Nikolaev said the work should be completed in 2027.

Nikolaev also said Yakutia mined 51.5 million tonnes of coal in 2025, 4.3% more than a year earlier. The republic has set a 2026 mining target of 56.5 million tonnes. Russian President Vladimir Putin opened the 531-km Pacific railway in September 2025, linking the republic with Khabarovsk Krai.