The economic future for Russia's Kuzbass coal mining region

Russia's Kemerovskaya oblast, often referred to as Kuzbass, is the most prominent coal mining region of the country. By the end of 2015, 215.6 million tons of coal or 58% of Russia's overall coal production came from this region, among them 70% of Russia's 87 million tons of coking coal. The region looks into an uncertain future, as demand for its coal is expected to diminish and the price for coal is likely to decline further. New innovative coal-based products may open up new market opportunities and could pave the way into a prosperous future. Its regional innovation system benefits from well-established R&D and educational institutes and a skilled workforce. Recently, an industry cluster has been set up to combine worldwide science with local production knowledge. Still, the success of these initiatives remains to be seen.