The Black Route of Occupation: the Ships Transporting Ukrainian Coal from Mariupol to russia

While the world is focused on the news from the frontline, where Ukraine is desperately defending its territory, another, less visible form of aggression is taking place on the temporarily occupied Ukrainian lands – resource colonization.

With the majority of russia’s coal production capacity being concentrated in Kemerovo region (up to 60 % of hard coal, 80 % of coking coal, and 100 % of certain high-value coal grades), russian companies are interested in coal from the temporarily occupied areas of the Ukrainian Donbas.

Mariupol, which was a powerful center of Ukraine’s metallurgy and coal industry before the occupation, found itself in a cynical resource colonization in 2024-2025: russia is exporting coking coal (used as fuel for thermal generation) from the temporarily occupied territories from the city’s port on an industrial scale, using Ukrainian mineral resources to fuel its own economy that works for the war.

This phenomenon is not an accident or “accidental business”. It is a goal-oriented strategy of economic exploitation of the occupied territories, which from the legal point of view is violation of international law and the rules of warfare enshrined in the Hague Conventions. The terrorist country has created its own “black economy” on the bones of the captured city.

For example, the ALFA-1 vessel exported more than 20 thousand tons of coking coal during the specified period of time; the ALFA M vessel exported about 40 thousand tons; the ALPHA HERMES – more than 5 thousand tons; the VICTORIA K – more than 20 thousand tons; the VICTORIA V – more than 35 thousand tons (120 thousand tons in total). This figure is equal to the value enough for producing thousands of tons of steel used to make armored vehicles, ammunition and warships.

Learn more about these vessels:

Vessel ALFA-1: IMO No. 9045601, flag – rf, port of registration – Taganrog, MMSI - 273610370, call sign – UBTY2, deadweight – 8764 tons, type of vessel – bulk carrier (for transportation of general cargo), classification society – russian maritime register of shipping, registration number – 877048, owner of the vessel – Nika Shipping LLC (so-called “dpr”, Donetsk, OGRN 1239300003304, TIN 9303032939), the operating company – Krechet LLC (rf, Rostov-on-Don, OGRN 1206100003163, TIN 6167197524, IMO No. 6328936), the ship's insurer – VSK Insurance Joint Stock Company (rf, moscow, TIN 7710026574, OGRN 1027700186062).

Vessel ALFA M: IMO No. 9419084, flag – rf, registration number of the russian maritime register of shipping – 050692, owner of the vessel – Nika Shipping LLC (the so-called “dpr”, Donetsk, OGRN 1239300003304, TIN 9303032939), operating company – Krechet LLC (rf, Rostov-on-Don, OGRN 1206100003163, TIN 6167197524, IMO No. 6328936), insurer – VSK Insurance Joint Stock Company (rf, moscow, TIN 7710026574, OGRN 1027700186062).

Vessel ALPHA HERMES, IMO No. 9924352, flag – rf, port of registration – Taganrog, call sign – UBDW5, MMSI – 273294550, deadweight – 8163 tons, type of vessel – bulk carrier (for general cargo), classification society – russian maritime register of shipping, registration number – 200106, owner and operating company – Alfa LLC (rf, Rostov-on-Don, OGRN 1166196058160, TIN 6164106688, IMO No. 6177581), the vessel’s insurer – JSC Group of Insurance Companies Yugoria (rf, Khanty-Mansiysk).

Vessel VICTORIA K, IMO No. 1041348, flag – rf, port of registration – Taganrog, MMSI – 273253950, call sign – UALA7, deadweight – 7847.2 tons, type of vessel – bulk carrier (for transportation of general cargo), classification society – russian maritime register of shipping, ship’s registration number – 191316, owner of the vessel – LLC “Production and Commercial Firm “SIBMARKET” (rf, Irkutsk, OGRN 1183850006262, TIN 3812522292), the operating company – KRECHET LLC (rf, Rostov-on-Don, TIN 6167197524, OGRN 1206100003163), the ship’s insurer – VSK Insurance Joint Stock Company (rf, moscow, TIN 7710026574, OGRN 1027700186062).

Vessel VICTORIA V, flag – rf, IMO No. 9454125, MMSI – 273253030, call sign – UAWA2, deadweight – 7546.8 tons, type of vessel – bulker (for bulk cargo), classification society – russian maritime register of shipping, registration number – 061292, owner of the vessel – LLC “Production and Commercial Firm “Sibmarket” (rf, Irkutsk). Irkutsk, OGRN 1183850006262, TIN 3812522292), the operating company – Krechet LLC (rf, Rostov-on-Don, TIN 6167197524, OGRN 1206100003163), the insurer – VSK Insurance Joint Stock Company (rf, moscow, TIN 7710026574, OGRN 1027700186062).

Among the russian companies involved in the illegal export of coal from the TOT of Ukraine: Nika Shipping LLC, PCF Sibmarket LLC, and Alfa LLC.

The export of coking coal from the TOT of Ukraine is not just another episode of economic exploitation in war time, but a goal-oriented strategy of resource colonization. russia is on the system level turning the occupied Ukrainian territories into a source of raw materials to support its own economy, which directly supports its military aggression.

This practice grossly violates the norms of international humanitarian law, including the 1907 Hague Convention, which prohibits the use of the resources of the occupied territories for the benefit of the occupier without the consent of the legitimate authorities. At the same time, impunity for such actions encourages further exploitation of Ukrainian mineral resources and strengthens the economic resilience of russia’s war machine.

The resource colonization of the TOT of Ukraine is yet another evidence that the war continues not only on the battlefield, but also in the economy, trade, and international law. And Ukraine’s victory in this war is impossible without protecting its economic sovereignty.