Photos: Ukraine’s coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

By William On Apr 9, 2023

Deep underground in southeastern Ukraine, miners work around the clock extracting coal to power the country’s war effort and provide light and heat to citizens.

Coal is essential to meet Ukraine’s energy needs after the Russian military’s campaign to destroy power plants and other infrastructure, said the chief engineer of a mining company in Dnipropetrovsk province.

Elevators take the company’s employees underground to the depths of the mine. From there they operate heavy machinery that excavates the coal and moves it above ground. It’s hard work, the miners say, but essential to keep the country going.

“Today, the country’s energy independence is more than a priority,” said Oleksandr, the chief engineer, who, like all the miners interviewed, spoke on the condition that he only use his first name for security reasons.

Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s nuclear, thermal and other power plants continue to disrupt electricity supplies as the war drags on for a second year.

Before the war, the Ukrainian government planned to reduce the country’s dependence on coal-fired power stations, which contribute to global warming, and to increase nuclear and natural gas production. But when Russian attacks damaged thermal plants in the middle of winter, it was coal that helped keep Ukrainian homes warm, Oleksandr said.

The miners’ work can’t fully offset the energy loss from nuclear power plants, but every megawatt they had has played a part in generating smaller gaps.

While many miners from the area joined the armed forces when Russian troops invaded and are now fighting at the front in eastern Ukraine, nearly 150 displaced workers from other coal-producing regions in the east joined the team in Dnipropetrovsk.

A man named Yurii left the disputed city of Vuhledar in Donetsk province, where he worked as a miner for 20 years. “The war, of course, radically changed my life,” he said. “It is now impossible to live there and the mine where I used to work.”

“Life starts from scratch,” he said.