One of Russia’s top coal companies has seen its largest production drop in a decade
One of Russia’s leading coal companies, the mining and metallurgical holding “Mechel”, has reported a sharp decline in coal production — falling to its lowest level in more than a decade. This is evidenced by the company’s financial statements.
In the third quarter of 2025, “Mechel” produced just 1.28 million tonnes of coal, down 16% from the previous quarter and 55% from the same period last year, when 2.89 million tonnes were mined.
For context, in 2013 the company produced between 6.4 and 7 million tonnes per quarter, while in 2009 production ranged from 3 to 5.4 million tonnes. In the first quarter of 2004, output was 3.6 million tonnes, compared with roughly 3.4 million tonnes in the same period of 2003.
Over the first nine months of 2025, total coal production fell 38% year-on-year to 4.93 million tonnes. By comparison, in the same period of 2015, “Mechel” produced 17.4 million tonnes.
BKS analysts confirm that these production volumes are the lowest in at least a decade, while the rate of decline is the steepest over the same period. According to Mechel’s summer report, the company had already recorded a 28% year-on-year drop to 3.66 million tonnes in the first half of 2025.
As a reminder, one of Russia’s largest banks, Sberbank, plans to complete a large-scale staff reduction by the end of 2025. Meanwhile, Russia’s major banks are preparing for a potential debt crisis.
