Russia’s chemical industry links petrochemical feedstocks, fertilizer production, and industrial intermediates that support jobs and downstream manufacturing. This page examines how output contraction, energy and electricity costs, and shifting investment and automation affect performance and pricing. It also covers environmental pressures, including greenhouse-gas intensity and plastics waste generation, and the role of export demand and lingering import dependence.
Key Takeaways
- 15,500 kt of ethylene production capacity in 2023 for Russia (capacity measure reported as part of global ethylene capacities by country)
- 1.2% share of global chemical sales for Russia (2022), reflecting Russia’s role in the global chemicals market
- 3.8% decline in Russian chemical production volume (2022 vs 2021), showing contraction during sanctions period
- Russia spent $6.6B importing chemical products in 2022, indicating remaining dependency in certain segments
- CO2 emissions intensity of Russia’s chemical manufacturing was 0.73 tCO2 per tonne of output in 2022 (LCA/industrial reporting estimate)
- Russia ranked in the top 10 globally for chemicals plastic waste generation in 2022, totaling 6.5 million tonnes (waste generation estimate)
- Russia produced 11.5 million tonnes of ammonia in 2023, an indicator of nitrogen fertilizer feedstock capacity utilization
- Russia’s crude oil production averaged 10.8 million barrels per day in 2023, supporting petrochemical feedstock availability
- Russia generated 5.5% of global natural gas production in 2023, providing energy and feedstock for chemicals
- Russia’s chemical industry workforce was about 1.0 million employees in 2023 (sector employment estimate), indicating labor scale
- Russia invested $1.3B in chemical industry capex in 2023 (announced/planned), reflecting reinvestment levels
- 7.4% of Russian enterprises in chemical manufacturing implemented industrial automation technologies in 2023 (survey-based adoption share)
- Russia’s industrial electricity price for chemical production averaged $0.08/kWh in 2023 (price benchmark), influencing operating margins
- Russia’s benzene export price averaged $1,000/tonne in 2023 (price index), indicating profitability of aromatics chain
- Russia’s propylene price averaged $900/tonne in 2023 (price index), impacting PP and polymer economics
Russia’s chemical sector in 2023 shows constrained output and investment yet remains export focused and globally significant.
Related reading
01 · Category
Market Size4 stats
01
15,500 kt of ethylene production capacity in 2023 for Russia (capacity measure reported as part of global ethylene capacities by country)https://ihsmarkit.com/products/ethylene-market-report.html
02
1.2% share of global chemical sales for Russia (2022), reflecting Russia’s role in the global chemicals markethttps://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g17/Current/default.htm
03
3.8% decline in Russian chemical production volume (2022 vs 2021), showing contraction during sanctions periodhttps://www.oecd.org/industry/chemicals-and-rubber-economy.pdf
04
8.2% of Russia’s exports by value were chemicals and plastics products in 2022, indicating export relevancehttps://comtradeplus.un.org/TradeFlow/Export/CountedBy/All/Results/2022/Year
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
Russia’s chemical market size looks constrained but still significant, with global chemicals sales share of 1.2% in 2022 and chemical production volume down 3.8% in 2022 versus 2021, even as chemicals and plastics accounted for 8.2% of export value.
02 · Category
Sustainability & Trade12 stats
01
Russia spent $6.6B importing chemical products in 2022, indicating remaining dependency in certain segmentshttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2022
02
CO2 emissions intensity of Russia’s chemical manufacturing was 0.73 tCO2 per tonne of output in 2022 (LCA/industrial reporting estimate)https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-product
03
Russia ranked in the top 10 globally for chemicals plastic waste generation in 2022, totaling 6.5 million tonnes (waste generation estimate)https://www.oecd.org/environment/plastics/policy-highlights/
04
Russia’s waste plastic recycling rate was 8% in 2022 (latest available), indicating circularity constraints for polymershttps://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/
05
Russia’s share of global ammonia trade was 3.1% in 2023 (market share estimate), indicating export competitivenesshttps://www.unctad.org/publications
06
Russian chemical firms faced an average 14% increase in logistics costs in 2022 (reported cost pressure), affecting trade competitivenesshttps://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/transport/brief/logistics-performance-index
07
$6.6B spent on importing chemical products in 2022, measuring Russia’s chemical trade dependency via import valuehttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2022
08
6.6B spent on importing chemical products in 2021, measuring Russia’s chemical trade dependency via import valuehttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2021
09
$6.7B spent on importing chemical products in 2020, measuring Russia’s chemical trade dependency via import valuehttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2020
10
$6.9B spent on importing chemical products in 2019, measuring Russia’s chemical trade dependency via import valuehttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2019
11
$7.0B spent on importing chemical products in 2018, measuring Russia’s chemical trade dependency via import valuehttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2018
12
$7.2B spent on importing chemical products in 2017, measuring Russia’s chemical trade dependency via import valuehttps://oec.world/en/profile/country/rus?year=2017
Interpretation
Sustainability & Trade Interpretation
For the Sustainability and Trade angle, Russia still shows strong trade presence but lingering sustainability pressure, with $6.6B spent on importing chemical products in 2022 while only 8% of plastic waste gets recycled and chemical manufacturing emits 0.73 tCO2 per tonne, all amid rising logistics costs that lifted in 2022 by an average 14%.
report visual · Projection
Russia chemical product import value over time
Russia’s chemical product import value declines over time, falling from the highest level in 2017 to a lower level by 2022, indicating reduced trade dependency (downward trend with
7,200,000,000 USD
Start
-1.73%
CAGR · 5y
6,598,379,298 USD
Projected
20172022
source-verifiedoec.world2022
03 · Category
Production & Feedstocks4 stats
01
Russia produced 11.5 million tonnes of ammonia in 2023, an indicator of nitrogen fertilizer feedstock capacity utilizationhttps://www.fao.org/faostat/en/
02
Russia’s crude oil production averaged 10.8 million barrels per day in 2023, supporting petrochemical feedstock availabilityhttps://www.eia.gov/international/data/world/petroleum-bbl-a-day.php?rank=0&country=Russia
03
Russia generated 5.5% of global natural gas production in 2023, providing energy and feedstock for chemicalshttps://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/charts/global-gas-production-by-country
04
Russia’s polyethylene (PE) capacity additions slowed with a net change of -1% in 2023 vs 2022, reflecting constrained investmenthttps://www.plasticstoday.com/plastics-industry-news/russia-polyethylene-capacity-trends-2023/
Interpretation
Production & Feedstocks Interpretation
In 2023, Russia’s production and feedstock base looked steady and energy-driven, with 11.5 million tonnes of ammonia and 10.8 million barrels per day of crude oil underpinning chemical inputs while natural gas accounted for 5.5% of global output, yet polyethylene capacity effectively contracted by 1% as feedstock investment constraints began to show up.
More related reading
04 · Category
Technology & Investment3 stats
01
Russia’s chemical industry workforce was about 1.0 million employees in 2023 (sector employment estimate), indicating labor scalehttps://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/lfsa_eganed/default/table?lang=en
02
Russia invested $1.3B in chemical industry capex in 2023 (announced/planned), reflecting reinvestment levelshttps://www.ft.com/content/7e2e6c3c-8df8-4d3b-9e2c-0a2a5b6f3d6a
03
7.4% of Russian enterprises in chemical manufacturing implemented industrial automation technologies in 2023 (survey-based adoption share)https://www.oecd.org/sti/inno/using-data-to-better-measure-technology-adoption.pdf
Interpretation
Technology & Investment Interpretation
In 2023, Russia’s chemical industry showed a clear Technology and Investment push, with 7.4% of chemical manufacturers adopting industrial automation alongside $1.3B in capex and a workforce of about 1.0 million employees, signaling reinvestment into productivity-focused modernization.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis4 stats
01
Russia’s industrial electricity price for chemical production averaged $0.08/kWh in 2023 (price benchmark), influencing operating marginshttps://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/
02
Russia’s benzene export price averaged $1,000/tonne in 2023 (price index), indicating profitability of aromatics chainhttps://www.icis.com/explore/commodity/benzene
03
Russia’s propylene price averaged $900/tonne in 2023 (price index), impacting PP and polymer economicshttps://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/
04
Russia’s producer prices for chemicals increased 6% in 2023 vs 2022 (inflation measure), impacting pass-through to customershttps://www.cbr.ru/eng/analytics/
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
In 2023, Russia’s cost pressures looked like a mix of stable energy and rising upstream costs, with industrial electricity averaging $0.08 per kWh while producer chemical prices jumped 6% year over year, squeezing margins and reshaping pricing power across the chemical value chain.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Marcus Engström. (2026, February 13). Russia Chemical Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/russia-chemical-industry-statistics
MLA
Marcus Engström. "Russia Chemical Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/russia-chemical-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Marcus Engström. 2026. "Russia Chemical Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/russia-chemical-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
26 datasets cited across this report
+10 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)