Kazakh coal transit through Russian ports increased sharply during the first half of 2026, supported by rail agreements and sanctions exemptions.
Transshipment of Kazakh coal through Russian Baltic and Southern ports in January-June 2026 increased to 6.7 mio t (+1.7 mio t or +34.0% y-o-y).
The growth stems from agreements reached between Russian Railways (RZD) and Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) in April 2025 to increase coal supplies to Russian ports. A crucial role was played by the EU’s decision in July 2025 to exempt transactions with certain Russian ports from sanctions for the purpose of transiting Kazakh coal.
Meanwhile, the increase in transit of Kazakh material is occurring on the back of a crisis in the Russian coal industry and lower Russian coal supplies in the northwestern direction. The promised 12.8% discount on RZD’s rail freight tariffs to ports in the Northwest and South was never granted. Furthermore, this route remains unprofitable for Russian coal exporters, facing record losses amid rising transport tariffs, sanctions, and low coal prices.
In H1 2026, transshipment of Russian coal via these two routes dropped to 30.0 mio t (-1.0 mio t or -3.3% y-o-y).
Combined handling of Russian and Kazakh coal in H1 2026 at the northwestern and southern terminals of Russia totaled 36.7 mio t (+0.7 mio t or +1.9% y-o-y).
Source: CCA
