Ukrainian metals industry performance is improving

Thanks to the shipping corridor in the Black Sea, Ukraine's steel industry will show improved production figures at the end of this year compared to 2023, although the growth will be insignificant.

Source: Oleksandr Kalenkov, President of the Association of Metallurgists and Miners of Ukraine, at a briefing at the Media Centre Ukraine, Ukrinform reports

Quote from Kalenkov: "We have seen some growth in our companies over the past year. As a result, I think we will reach [the mark of] 7.2-7.3 million tonnes of steel in 2024. Remember that last year Ukraine produced 6.2 million tonnes of steel, so an increase to 7.3 million is not much."

Kalenkov noted that the improvement in production figures was primarily due to the operation of the maritime corridor, which enabled exports of steel products, which had been suspended since the start of the full-scale invasion, to resume at the end of last year.

"We are an export-oriented industry, exporting over 80% of our steel products and over 50% of iron ore. And the vast majority of exports – about 80% – have always gone by sea. Therefore, thanks to the operation of the sea corridor, we have been able to improve the production situation a little. But it’s not comparable to the pre-war period," Kalenkov added.

In 2008, for example, Ukrainian steelmakers produced a record amount of nearly 42 million tonnes of steel. Average annual steel production in 2013, before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, was 32 million tonnes. During the period before the full-scale invasion (2014-2022), around 21-22 million tonnes of steel was produced annually.

"The industry suffered a devastating blow at the beginning of 2022, and we produced 6 million tonnes that year, although companies in Mariupol were still operating in the first few months of the year," said Kalenkov.

Throughout last year, steel mills in the Ukrainian-controlled area operated at less than 50% of their pre-war capacity.

"For the last three years we have been living in survival mode. It is important for us to maintain production volumes in order to retain our workforce and keep our businesses running. We have not been expecting any profits for a long time – all our companies are operating at a huge loss," the expert said.

Background: In October, Ukrainian steelmakers reduced production of steel by 1% and rolled metal products by 12.2% compared to September 2024.

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