On July 7, 2021, during the meeting between Vladimir Putin and the Russian Government, the head of Russian Railways (RZD) Oleg Belozerov proposed to construct a new railway line, which will connect Yakutia’s coal producers directly to the Far Eastern ports, bypassing the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM) and the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR).
The proposal was initiated by Elgacoal company, owned by Albert Avdolyan’s A-Property and Rostec state corporation. Under Oleg Belozerov, the new line will reduce the load of BAM and TSR and let the key coal-exporters of Yakutia to ramp up their export supplies. The carrying capacity of the line is expected to reach 50 mio t/year. The Chumikan settlement, located by the Sea of Okhotsk, is considered to be the endpoint of the new diversion.
The move may benefit two large coal suppliers in Yakutia – Kolmar and Elgacoal. Both companies intend to enhance production volumes as well as the existing port capacities. A new coal terminal VaninoTransUgol (VTU), constructed by Kolmar’s subsidiary, assumes a gradual increase in coal handling capacity from current 12 mio t per year up to 24 mio t by 2022. Albert Avdolyan’s A-Property also plans to construct a coal terminal in the port of Vanino with annual capacity of 30 mio t by 2024 and build a washing plant at Elga with a processing capacity of 32 mio t at the first stage (end of 2021) and 45 mio t at the second stage (2023).
Source: CAA Analytics
