How Konstantin Strukov’s coal empire became entangled with Dmitriy Kovalenko’s European trading network
Konstantin Strukov’s coal empire, Dmitriy Kovalenko’s trading network and a web of companies spanning Russia, Poland, Switzerland and Dubai
For years, Konstantin Strukov built his fortune in Russia’s coal industry while maintaining an extensive network of companies and business relationships stretching beyond the country’s borders. Among the most significant was his relationship with Ukrainian businessman Dmitriy Kovalenko, whose trading operations reached into Switzerland, Poland, Cyprus and Dubai.
Now, that relationship is drawing scrutiny.
According to the material reviewed for this investigation, Kovalenko’s Swiss-registered company, Adelon AG, purchased nearly $90 million worth of coal from LLC Meltek, a company associated with Strukov. The transactions sit at the center of a wider network of corporate entities and shipping arrangements that allegedly allowed Russian coal to reach European markets through complicated transit structures.
The scale of the business relationship is striking. Adelon AG was also reported to have imported more than $100 million in coal from other Russian producers, including SibenergoUgol and Sibpromnedra.
The $90 Million Connection
Meltek, a company that has existed since 2013, was registered in Prokopyevsk in Russia’s Kemerovo region, one of the country’s principal coal-producing areas.
Corporate ownership records described in the material show links between Meltek and entities associated with Strukov’s family. One of those companies, Business-Active, was owned by Strukov’s daughter Evgenia Kuznetsova. Another entity, KEVRZ, was connected through LLC Home and Ekaterina Abramova, who had previously been a co-founder of a company with Strukov’s other daughter, Alexandra.
The structure meant that Meltek was not simply another coal supplier. It formed part of a broader corporate network surrounding Strukov and his family.
And according to the material, that network intersected directly with Kovalenko’s international trading businesses.
From Russia to Poland
The Polish Link
The trading network extended into Poland through Polska Grupa Importowa Premium Sp. z o.o., a coal-trading company registered in Katowice.
The company was incorporated on May 4, 2020, under KRS 0000838597, with its registered office at Aleja Wojciecha Korfantego 138A, 40-156 Katowice. Polish corporate records classify its principal business as the wholesale trade of fuels and related products.
PGIP’s own website says the company trades coal, anthracite and coke and lists major European ports including Świnoujście, Gdańsk and Gdynia among its shipping locations.
The ownership trail is particularly significant. A public-sector register identifies Dmytro Kovalenko, resident in Monaco and a Ukrainian national, as the ultimate beneficial owner of Polska Grupa Importowa Premium.
Corporate records also show Adelon Anstalt as holding 100% of PGIP, with 40,000 shares representing the entire company.
That puts the Polish company directly inside the same corporate structure as Adelon AG, the Swiss trading company associated with Kovalenko. Adelon itself has publicly described Adelon AG and Polska Grupa Importowa Premium as members of the same Adelon group.
Why the Polish Company Matters
This is important because the Polish entity is not merely a name appearing somewhere in the background. Its own corporate website describes an operation built around coal procurement, customs clearance, quality control, logistics and transshipment. It also identifies Poland’s major coal ports as part of its logistics network.
In other words, the corporate chain described in the documents runs through Russia → Switzerland → Poland → Dubai, with additional links to Cyprus.
And this is where the Azurit DWC LLC trade data becomes relevant: Volza lists OOO Meltek among Azurit’s suppliers, while Meltek is the Russian coal company linked to Konstantin Strukov. That gives the investigation a separate trade-data connection between the Dubai entity and the Russian supplier.
The mechanism involved what the material describes as an “interrupted transit” scheme.
Under that arrangement, Russian coal could be shipped toward Poland but then diverted or returned during transit. In some cases, cargo allegedly remained on Ukrainian territory; in others, coal was purportedly delivered to Poland and subsequently returned under the explanation that it did not meet contractual specifications.
The objective, according to the material, was straightforward: create a route through which Russian coal could continue moving despite restrictions.
The allegations become particularly significant after February 24, 2022, when sanctions and restrictions dramatically changed the European market for Russian commodities.
Yet, according to the source material, Kovalenko’s companies continued operating in the coal trade and even increased their volumes as competitors withdrew from Russian supplies.
A Swiss Company With Russian Supply Lines
Adelon AG presented itself as a Swiss company based in Zug. In 2023, the company was reported to have developed a supply channel capable of moving as much as 200,000 tons of coal to Poland and Ukraine.
The company said it sourced coal from countries including South Africa, Australia, the United States, Mozambique, Colombia and Indonesia.
But the material reviewed for this investigation alleges that Russian coal was moving behind those international supply narratives.
Adelon’s Polish subsidiary, Polska Grupa Importowa Premium sp. z o.o., was registered in Katowice and had been active since May 4, 2020. Corporate information cited in the material identified the company as a subsidiary of Adelon AG and linked it to Kovalenko, who was residing in Monaco.
The Ship-to-Ship Network
The logistics operation added another layer of complexity.
Large vessels carrying between 50,000 and 60,000 tons of coal could unload at Polish ports, while smaller vessels carrying approximately 5,000 to 15,000 tons would receive the cargo through ship-to-ship transfers.
The material says Adelon specialists developed a system of transshipment at anchorage, allowing cargo to be transferred without relying entirely on conventional port unloading capacity.
The ports mentioned include Świnoujście, Gdynia and Gdańsk.
Kovalenko also acquired a company in Kyiv called Overfood, which was later moved to Chornomorsk and renamed Granova Logistic. His son Daniil Kovalenko was made its beneficiary, while the company was connected to the Cypriot offshore entity Afex Investments Limited.
Dubai Enters the Picture
The corporate trail does not end in Europe.
Kovalenko was also associated with Azurit DWC-LLC, a company registered in Dubai. The material describes the entity as a vehicle used for financial operations and tax minimization.
Another Dubai company, Plaimp SFP Limited, was also associated with Kovalenko.
That creates a corporate chain stretching from Russian coal producers to Switzerland, Poland, Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates.
Trade Data Adds a Direct Link to Meltek
A separate review of trade-shipment data provides a more concrete connection between Azurit DWC LLC and Konstantin Strukov’s coal business.
Trade-data provider Volza lists 308 import shipments for Azurit DWC LLC, with five suppliers. Among the suppliers identified on the company’s profile is OOO Meltek, the Russian coal company linked to Strukov and his business network. Volza classifies the company’s imports under, among other codes, HSN 2701, covering coal.
The trade data also shows a geographic split that warrants closer examination. Of the 308 shipments recorded by Volza, 290 shipments, or 94.16%, originated in Ukraine, while 18 shipments, or 5.84%, originated in Russia.
Volza’s sample bill of lading provides an additional data point. It records a 44,350-kilogram shipment of coke and semi-coke from Ukraine, dated October 17, 2021, with PJSC ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih identified as the supplier.
The presence of Meltek in Azurit’s supplier network is particularly significant because it independently connects the Dubai-based entity to the Russian coal company at the center of the wider trading structure described in this investigation.
The Volza data does not by itself establish that every Azurit shipment originated in Russia, nor does it prove that any transaction violated sanctions or other laws. But it does establish something more precise: Azurit DWC LLC appears in trade records as an importer of coal-related products, and OOO Meltek appears among its listed suppliers.
That corporate connection is stronger and safer to publish than saying simply that Azurit was a “shell company used to move Russian coal.” The latter requires additional documentary evidence; the Volza record supports the former directly.
Strukov’s Downfall
The coal-trading a emerged as Strukov himself faced a dramatic reversal of fortune.
On July 6, 2025, Russian security officials detained Strukov aboard his Bombardier business jet as it was preparing for departure. His foreign passport was confiscated, according to the material.
Days later, on July 11, the Soviet District Court of Chelyabinsk approved a lawsuit brought by Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office seeking the transfer of shares in PJSC YUGK and assets belonging to companies controlled by Strukov and members of his family.
More than 149.8 billion shares of YUGK and 100% of the authorized capital of MC YUGK were transferred to the state, according to the material.
Strukov was also removed as president of MC YUGK on July 14, with Russia’s Federal Agency for State Property Management becoming the company’s founder.
The Tax Dispute
The financial problems extended beyond the seizure of assets.
Meltek and related companies were involved in a dispute with Russia’s Federal Tax Service. The material says the company was a defendant in a case involving 1.5 billion rubles, while an arbitration court ordered the recovery of more than 747 million rubles jointly from Strukov, his daughter Evgenia Kuznetsova, YUGK and other related entities.
The court case concerned allegations that an illegal business model had created losses at a bankrupt enterprise and reduced tax payments.
The Question Behind the Coal Trail
The central question is not simply how much coal changed hands.
It is how Russian coal could continue appearing in international trading networks after restrictions were imposed, while companies involved in those transactions presented themselves as suppliers of coal from countries such as the United States, Australia, South Africa and Indonesia.
The material reviewed for this investigation alleges that documents connecting Kovalenko’s companies to Meltek identified the Russian Federation as the country of origin of the coal.
Adelon AG itself issued a statement in December 2019 saying it was exclusively engaged in coal supplies from Russia’s Kuzbass coal basin and did not conduct business in Ukraine. According to the material, after February 24, 2022, Kovalenko began presenting himself as the beneficiary of Adelon AG while promoting supplies from other countries.
That contrast is at the heart of the story.
A Russian coal producer.
A Monaco-based trader.
A Swiss company.
Polish logistics firms.
Cypriot entities.
Dubai companies.
And a reported $90 million flow of coal between them.
https://www.opensanctions.org/entities/NK-jTDQb92SbVDSe4ANBLK8C8 Closed Joint-Stock Company «Shakhta Belovskaya» · Shakhta
| Sanctions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | Authority | Program | Start date | End date | |
| Ukraine | National Security and Defense Council | Law of Ukraine “On Sanctions” No. 1644-VII dated 14 Aug. 2014 | 2022-10-19 | 2027-10-19 | Details |
https://www.rusprofile.ru/id/2212939
The documents and corporate links described in the material suggest a trading network whose structure was far more complicated than the public-facing descriptions of its supply chains.
And as Strukov’s business empire began to collapse, the relationship with Kovalenko became increasingly difficult to ignore.
The question now is whether the same network that helped move Russian coal across borders also helped conceal its true origin.
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