The Russian economy and Vladimir Putin’s war machine remain propped up by energy exports. While Europe has dramatically cut its dependence on Russian energy since the start of the war, Russia has found new markets, largely in Asia, to soften the blow of biting Western sanctions. But as President Trump pushes for an end to the war – and for American allies and trading partners to slash Russian energy consumption – it’s U.S. coal that could prove decisive.
For all the focus on Russia’s oil and gas exports, Russian coal is a target ripe for a pressure campaign. Remarkably, Russia’s coal export revenues are larger than both those of pipeline gas and pipeline crude oil totaling an estimated $31 billion per year. It’s a substantial stream of foreign currency that has been used to bolster Russian offensives and pay for Iranian drones and North Korean troops and equipment.
Russia has had to reorient the market for its coal from west to east, but exports are growing, reaching a new high this past August. Astonishingly, it’s not only China but several close U.S. allies driving the purchases—allies that could and should be using U.S. coal instead.
The five largest destinations for Russian coal are China, India, Turkey, South Korea and Taiwan, all markets with overlap for U.S. coal exports.
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