The hidden treasure of the Donbass: subsoil rich in rare earths (essential for hi-tech), uranium, cobalt. The economic return that is coveted by Putin

“The primary objective is the Donbass”. Vladimir Putin he has made it clear in recent days and is stepping up efforts to conquer the entire region. But why is this area so important to the Kremlin? The so-called safeguarding of Russian speakers it was one of the causes that triggered the conflict in this area as early as 2014 and Moscow wants to “conclude” what began eight years ago. The other reason is military and political: to control the corridor between Rostov and Crimea it serves Mariupol but also the northernmost area, avoiding Ukrainian counterattacks from the northern route. The peninsula on the Black Sea has serious difficulties electricity and water supply and it is for this reason that Putin needs the coastal territory by guaranteeing a direct channel with the motherland.

But there are also relevant economic reasons. The Donbass, historically, is rich in mines for the extraction of coaliron but also methane, manganese, cobalt and those rare metals which are increasingly valuable for technological development. The reference is to the deposits with which the “ingredients” to build the smartphone and optical fibersor titanium and lithium for the electric automotive. “The reasons why this territory is fundamental for Putin are varied – he explains Marco Di Liddo“senior” analyst of Ce.SI – Centro Studi Internazionale – but if we consider that the military operation in progress is particularly expensive for Russian finances, the economic return must be adequate for the efforts “. Hence the need to take Mariupol: “It is the second most important port in all of Ukraine and it can accommodate cargo ships. Moreover, by conquering the coastal city, Russia would place a serious mortgage on offshore gas fields in the Sea of ​​Azov while on the mainland there are several deposits of bituminous rocks from which the shale gas is extracted. It is a basin that has only been partially explored: it is not known exactly how many resources are available, but it is worth furthering the research “.

Ukraine boasts 8,500 mining deposits of industrial importance and about 110 different types of minerals; the mining industry, until 2014, was generating 15 billion dollars a year. In coal mining, of which the Donbass is particularly rich, the country is in tenth place in the world. “And then – continues Di Liddo – there are graphite, titanium, iron, uranium and the so-called Rare lands including the lithium in addition to aluminum and copper, so precious in the development of hi-tech“. So, is economic interest the main motivation that pushes Putin to concentrate tens of thousands of troops to conquer the Donbass? “I wouldn’t say that. Political reasons, especially at the internal propaganda level, are those that allow for a major popular support because they move the voter’s belly and influence society. The alleged desire to free the territory from Ukrainian nationalists and to defend the Russian-speaking entity is the declared objective of Moscow from the beginning, but the wealth present in this region could serve, at least in part, to finance the reconstruction of an already battered area and that at the end of the war it will be in even worse conditions ”.

The Donbass, in any case, has rather dissimilar territories: the Donetsk area is more developed while Luhanks much less. If Putin’s primary interest were economic, it would make more sense to annex the former entirely, especially the Sloviansk and Kramatorsk area, less the latter where the economy is more modest. According to Ukrainian research center YouControl, of the thousand largest companies in the country, only six are registered in the Luhansk region … The other aspect to consider is that around 23-24 million tons of coal per year. Of these, in the two self-proclaimed republics controlled by Moscow for eight years already, well 18 million. It is therefore evident that the most profitable areas are already in Russian hands.

Moreover, if in the era of the Soviet Union this area was among the most prestigious, in the last twenty years there has been a slow decline, exacerbated by the war that began here as early as 2014. The younger generations have left and mostly the elderly and the less well-off remained. In 2013, the provinces of Donetsk e Luhansk accounted for almost the 16% of the gross domestic product of Ukraine, second only to Kiev, but in the last eight years there coal production fell nearly threefold. There are about 80 metallurgical companies but many are no longer in operation since before February 24th. Several large mining companies and numerous petrochemical companies, including the mammoth refinery in Lysychansk, are now inactive and not due to the ongoing conflict. It remains a huge growth potential but in a declining area. And that at the end of this war it will be largely destroyed.

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