Railway throughput capacity of the Eastern range is still not enough for Kuzbass coal producers, says Sergei Tsivilev, a governor of the region.
Despite the Western sanctions, Russian coal companies shifted supplies eastwards pretty quickly. However, due to the limited throughput railway capacity of the Eastern range, coal suppliers are not able to redirect all unclaimed volumes from the North-Western terminals to the Far Eastern ports.
In view of the development program of the Eastern range, Kuzbass coal companies implemented projects aimed at coal output increase and logistics development. However, the Russian Railways (RZD) failed to meet their goals on schedule.
According to Sergei Tsivilev, the volume of coal supplies from Kuzbass region to the Far East remained the same for the last 6 years. The limited throughput capacity of the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM) and the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR) is a key factor, hindering the growth of coal transshipment volumes from Kuzbass region to Far Eastern ports.
The current program of the Eastern range development is meant to increase the carrying capacity of BAM and TSR to 180 mio t by 2024. This volume refers to all cargoes including coal, oil and oil products, construction materials and others. In 2023, RZD expects the increase in railway throughput capacity from 158 to 173 mio t.
Source: CAA
