Vorkuta

Vorkuta
Воркута
Other transcription(s)
 • KomiВӧркута
Central Vorkuta
Interactive map of Vorkuta
Vorkuta
Location of Vorkuta
Vorkuta
Vorkuta (European Russia)
Vorkuta
Vorkuta (Arctic)
Coordinates: 67°30′N 64°02′E / 67.500°N 64.033°E / 67.500; 64.033
CountryRussia
Federal subjectKomi Republic
FoundedJanuary 4, 1936
Town status sinceNovember 26, 1943
Government
 • Administration ManagerYaroslav Shaposhnikov
Area
 • Total
28.69 km2 (11.08 sq mi)
Elevation
180 m (590 ft)
Population
 • Total
70,548
 • Estimate 
(2025)
55,702 (−21%)
 • Rank224th in 2010
 • Density2,459/km2 (6,369/sq mi)
 • Subordinated totown of republic significance of Vorkuta
 • Capital oftown of republic significance of Vorkuta
 • Urban okrugVorkuta Urban Okrug
 • Capital ofVorkuta Urban Okrug
Time zoneUTC+3 (MSK )
Postal code
169900
Dialing code+7 82151
OKTMO ID87710000001

Vorkuta (Russian: Воркута́; Komi: Вӧркута, romanized: Vörkuta) is a coal-mining town in the Komi Republic of Russia, situated just north of the Arctic Circle in the Pechora coal basin, at the river Vorkuta. Population: 56,985 (2021 census); 70,548 (2010 census); 84,917 (2002 census); 115,646 (1989 Soviet census).

Vorkuta is among the top five cities north of the Arctic Circle and the easternmost town in Europe. It has the coldest recorded temperature of any European city, at −52 °C (−61 °F).

Vorkuta's population has dropped steadily since the fall of the Soviet Union, when mines were privatized and many people began moving farther south. Many of the mines have been abandoned, and by September 2020, the city's estimated population was only about 50,000.