“From the first day of the full-scale invasion and three years later, we continue to fight for Ukraine. Despite the challenges of wartime, Metinvest has managed not only to survive, but also to maintain its status as an export leader, a pillar of the country and one of the largest donors to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. All of this is thanks to the contribution of each Metinvest employee in Ukraine and abroad. We are united by a shared goal — to bring victory closer through all available means. And following that, to become the foundation for post-war reconstruction.”
Yuriy Ryzhenkov,
CEO of Metinvest Group
Metinvest’s Ukrainian enterprises are operating under the constant threat of enemy shelling. The Group’s assets in Mariupol and Avdiivka have been affected by hostilities, and the cities are occupied. In addition, recently Metinvest has suspended operations at Pokrovske Coal due to the evolving frontline conditions, power shortages and the deteriorating security situation.
The Group's assets in Kryvyi Rih, Zaporizhzhia and Kamianske continue to operate at different capacity utilisation levels, taking into account security, energy, logistical and economic factors.
Metinvest’s priority remains the well-being of its employees. The Group’s enterprises in Ukraine all have bomb shelters that are stocked with water, food and medical supplies, ensuring they can sustain prolonged stays.
Despite the wartime challenges, Metinvest is investing in the future. In 2025, the Group is expecting to spend nearly UAH5.7 billion on the development of the mining and processing plants in Kryvyi Rih. Investments in production at Kamet Steel is expected to amount to UAH2.5 billion
This is a record amount for recent years, with a significant portion allocated to maintaining the operability of core equipment and technological processes to ensure the enterprise’s stable output.
The payment of taxes is an important contribution to sustaining Ukraine’s economy and frontline regions. In 2024, including associated companies and joint ventures, Metinvest paid UAH19.8 billion to budgets of all levels in Ukraine, accounting for 61% of the total contributions from the country’s metallurgical enterprises. This makes the Group the largest taxpayer in the mining and metals sector.
Since the first days of the full-scale invasion, Metinvest has been supporting Ukraine’s defence forces as part of Rinat Akhmetov’s Steel Front defence initiative. Over this period, the Group has become one of the largest donors among private businesses to the Ukrainian army, having allocated UAH4.4 billion for the needs of the military.
Metinvest has established steel production for the army to strengthen the country’s defence capabilities. Special mobile shelters that serve both as protection from enemy fire and field housing for soldiers are one of the most important developments. To date, the military has received 679 of these structures. In addition, using this design as a base, Metinvest’s specialists are manufacturing command posts, and have also built Ukraine’s first underground hospital, which has already saved the lives of more than 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers.
The Group has also mastered the production of steel screens for domestic T-64 and T-72 tanks, American M1 Abrams tanks and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, as well as preparing to integrate them into various Leopard 2 modifications. Soldiers have received 300 screens to date.
The defenders of the sky have also needed the assistance of steelmakers. Using blueprints, Metinvest manufactured a shield for the crew of the Patriot SAM system from Ukrainian armour steel. The shield consists of nearly 200 elements — including armoured steel plates with a thickness of up to 8 mm – that protect the air defence control unit.
Metinvest is also engaged in the demining of Ukrainian territories. The Group’s specialists have set up the production of mine trawls, special structures that are mounted on tanks to neutralise anti-tank and anti-personnel mines. To date, 30 trawls have been delivered to the frontline.
Metinvest’s steel is also used to manufacture plates for bulletproof vests, “Lancet catchers”, anti-tank hedgehogs, minibastions and buggy vehicles.
Metinvest allocates resources to purchase equipment, ammunition and vehicles for the front line. The military has received nearly 7,700 reconnaissance drones, 2,000 thermal imagers, 2,000 high-precision observation optics, 450 backup power systems, 875 units of communication equipment, 650 vehicles, including ambulances, and 1.5 million litres of fuel to power them. The Group has supplied 31,500 first aid kits and tourniquets to the army and spent over UAH25 million on developing tactical medicine in Ukraine in cooperation with the PULSE charitable foundation.
In addition, Metinvest is working with Ukraine's defence forces to construct defence lines: engaging specialists and providing materials and special equipment. Over 200 kilometres of fortifications have been built in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.
More than 8,000 Metinvest employees, including those from associated companies and joint ventures, are serving in Ukraine’s defence forces . The Group supports them at the mobilisation stage and throughout their military service, helping to meet their basic needs for gear, equipment and supplies. After returning from the front, the Group creates conditions for veterans to adapt comfortably to civilian life. The enterprises have an entire ecosystem for this purpose based on the principles of responsibility, consistency and internal justice.
Metinvest offers jobs to veterans and currently has, nearly 4,000 vacancies in engineering and technical specialities. Veterans have the opportunity to retrain, improve their qualifications and enrol in Metinvest Polytechnic mining and metals university free of charge and on streamlined terms. Physical and psychological rehabilitation is also available at the Group’s expense and teams are trained on how to interact with their demobilised colleagues.
Metinvest’s system of care for former military personnel extends beyond its enterprises to the regions where it operates. At the end of 2024, the Group supported the opening of a new hub for veterans in Kamianske. Communicate Veteran is a platform for open dialogue between veterans and experts from various fields, operating in Kryvyi Rih and Zaporizhzhia. Thanks to funding provided by the Group, veterans in these cities have access to free swimming sessions as part of the Free Waves project.
Hub for veterans
The Metinvest Together psychological support service has been available to Metinvest employees and their families since the beginning of the war. Over the past three years, specialists have provided more than 5,500 counselling sessions, including for military personnel and veterans.
To overcome workforce shortages partly caused by mobilisation, Metinvest offers employees the opportunity to retrain and acquire additional qualifications free of charge. For example, an increasing number of women in the Group are mastering traditionally male-dominated professions. Currently, they account for almost 30% of the workforce.
As in pre-war times, Metinvest’s priority remains the life, health and well-being of employees and their family members. The Group has supported the families of miners who were evacuated from Pokrovske Coal. They receive financial assistance (relocation allowance and housing rent compensation), free accommodation in dormitories, as well as assistance for children (enrolment in kindergartens and schools). Similarly, the Group has taken care of employees from Mariupol and Avdiivka earlier.
At the onset of the full-scale invasion, Metinvest launched the Saving Lives humanitarian project, which has already helped around 516,000 civilians. Thanks to donors and partners, around 4,200 tonnes of food, personal care products and other essentials have been delivered to Ukraine. Medicines and equipment worth UAH9.5 million have been provided to hospitals. Another important aspect of the work is the physical and psychological rehabilitation of military personnel and civilians. Almost 140 Ukrainian defenders and civilians have received assistance through the prosthetics, rehabilitation and surgical programme. Nearly 2,670 women and children affected by the war have achieved improved mental health outcomes.
The shelter in a kindergarten
As a socially responsible business, Metinvest continues to implement important projects for residents in the regions where it operates. In Kryvyi Rih, together with philanthropists, the Group helped to overhaul and equip shelters in a lyceum and kindergarten in Inhulets district. In Kamianske, Metinvest renovated an outpatient clinic of the Primary Healthcare Centre.
While taking care of the country and its citizens amid the full-scale war, Metinvest is making plans for the future and is striving to become the foundation for Ukraine’s post-war recovery. Steel Dream is one such promising project, a concept for rebuilding housing and social infrastructure.