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Stocks of anthracite coal at Ukrainian thermal power plants (TPP) shrank by 14% from March 29 to April 5, to 424,000 tonnes, according to the Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Ministry's press service.
However, stocks of gas coal increased by 6.4%, to 1.402 million tonnes from 1.318 million tonnes.
Read alsoDonbasenergo loses control of Starobeshivska TPP in occupied DonbasIn general, coal stocks at TPPs rose by 0.8% for the week, to 1.826 million tonnes.
UNIAN memo. Fighting in the eastern regions of Ukraine has caused a significant shortage of coal, primarily that of thermal anthracite produced in militant-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Thus, the deficit of coal affects the operation of power plants, which have to reduce their capacity. In order to provide the smooth operation of the power grids, anthracite was imported from South Africa. However, the issue of coal shipments to thermal power plants became critical after the launch of a blockade of trade with the occupied areas in late January 2017.