Kazakh coal producers are interested in entering new markets in Europe and Asia after the reduction in coal export to Russia, Executive Director of the Republican Association of Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises Nikolai Radostovets said.
Russia is set to replace Kazakh coal imports to its own coal, within the program of industry development until 2030.
Kazakh coal companies want to sign long-term export contracts, Radostovets said.
He also noted that Russia was going to increase the fee for transit carriers. This increase will affect Kazakh coal exporters among others. Radostovets asked Kazakh Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev to support local companies in this issue within the forthcoming negotiations with Russia.
The Head of the Republican Association of Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises also stressed that Kazakhstan required new coal strategy and new rules of cargo transportation.
He also noted that coal producers in Kazakhstan experienced rail car shortage – in late 2016 they were provided with 70% of required cars and proposed to create a special working group under the Ministry of Investment and Development, which would optimize the process of car provision.
Kazakhstan produced 98 million tons of coal in 2016. As much as 71.8 million tons of this volume was supplied to domestic market, 26.2 million tons sent to export. In 2017 Kazakhstan plans to produce 100 million tons. (Trend/Ukrainian metal)
