Photo: 112.ua
Oleksandr Yanukovych, the son of former fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych, is earning millions of dollars by selling coal illegally exported from the occupied Donbas to Turkey. This is according to an investigation by the independent publication iStories.
According to journalists, Energoresurs, registered in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, exported 500,000 tonnes of coal in 2023-2024. The total sales amounted to at least $35 million.
The investigation found that coal is mined in the mines of the occupied Donbas and exported to Turkey by rail and sea. The main buyer is the offshore company Energy Union, registered in the British Virgin Islands. Energoresurs sells coal at a significantly reduced price, around $60 per tonne, which allows it to minimise tax deductions before reselling it on international markets at higher prices.
Journalists discovered a link between Energoresurs and Oleksandr Yanukovych through his assets in the coal industry. The company also received a seven million dollar loan from SL Holdings Limited, a Cypriot company allegedly controlled by people close to him.
Until 2022, Energoresurs supplied coal to Bulgaria, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Romania. However, after Russia’s full-scale invasion, Turkey became the main buyer.
Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly called for sanctions against companies that buy illegally extracted minerals from the occupied territories.
