"What is Metinvest? For the whole world, it is steel. In skyscrapers and ships. In wagons and rails. On the Atlantic coast and at the bottom of the Adriatic. However, for Ukraine, the Group is a source of reliable support. It is thousands of people who put their souls into their work, take care of their compatriots and serve in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. From the first day of the war, Metinvest has been helping the country to be strong. We are everywhere where support is needed. And together we are bringing Ukraine’s victory closer."
Yuriy Ryzhenkov
CEO of Metinvest
Metinvest’s enterprises have been affected by numerous factors, including rising operating costs, decreased product prices and disrupted logistics. Nevertheless, the Group is striving to have operations where it is safe for people and economically feasible.
The Group is currently operating at 30-50% of its pre-war capacity. Logistics are complicating product shipments: at present, the Black Sea ports are inaccessible for exporting coal, iron ore and steel from Ukraine. While Metinvest is looking for alternative ways to supply products to consumers by rail, the cost of such transportation remains high.
Kamet Steel, Metinvest’s metallurgical asset in Kamianske, continues to operate. So does Zaporizhstal, the Group’s joint venture in Zaporizhzhia.
In particular, Kamet Steel has launched ten new types of rolled products since the beginning of the year. Among them are 32, 34, 36 and 38 mm-diameter rounds, which are used in machine-building, and the MP-4 shaped section, which Azovstal previously made. In addition, Kamet Steel has resumed production of railcar axles and liquid argon.
Zaporizhstal is also expanding its product line. It has launched the output of double-weight cold-rolled coils without a welded seam, intended mainly for the construction industry.
At the same time, Metinvest’s top priority remains the life and health of employees involved in operations. To protect their lives, the Group’s enterprises have bomb shelters that are equipped for long stays, with water and substantial supplies of food and medicine
Due to the Russian aggression and occupation of Mariupol, Azovstal and Ilyich Steel have suspended operations. Assessing the scale of losses will be possible only after the de-occupation of Mariupol and Ukraine’s victory over the aggressor.
Operations have also been suspended at Avdiivka Coke, which has been mothballed.
Ore mining has been suspended at Ingulets GOK since July and at Northern GOK since the end of August. Central GOK is operating without significant production breaks, but at reduced capacity.
The enterprises of Pokrovske Coal continue to mine and process coal. Since the beginning of the year, Svyato-Varvarinskaya Enrichment Plant has produced over 2 million tonnes of high-quality concentrate.
Metinvest continues to fight against theft by Russia, which is illegally exporting metal from Mariupol. The Group is making every effort to bring the perpetrators and their accomplices to legal account.
In addition, 16 Metinvest companies have filed lawsuits with the European Court of Human Rights against Russia for damage caused by Russia to the Group’s property in Mariupol and other territories of Ukraine since 24 February 2022. In particular, Azovstal and Ilyich Steel have filed claims against Mariupol-based metallurgical enterprises. In addition, more than 10 Metinvest companies will file similar claims by the year-end.
Metinvest has allocated UAH1.4 billion to support the defense, more than half of the amount pledged to help Ukraine. The largest projects are being implemented as part of Rinat Akhmetov’s Steel Front military initiative.
The Group has become one of the largest suppliers of special steel and protective ammunition in Ukraine. To date, it has supplied 150,000 bulletproof vests to protect the defenders of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the Main Intelligence Directorate and other military bodies. As such, every tenth bulletproof vest in the Ukrainian army has come from Metinvest. While some of the bulletproof vests are purchased abroad, most are manufactured in Ukraine. Military medics, rescuers of the State Emergency Service and employees of public utilities also receive bulletproof vests. The Group has also provided 23,000 helmets to soldiers.
Currently, 7,000 employees of Metinvest serve in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The Group provides them with protective items.
Metinvest’s metallurgists have developed protective structures for the military. They have already sent 29 metal shelters to the front line to strengthen trenches, and the Group plans to manufacture and deliver 30 such shelters every month.
Metinvest is also providing defenders with tactical equipment that is sourced and purchased abroad. The Group has already delivered 1,750 thermal imagers, over 800 drones and 100 radios to the front line
In addition, the Group has supplied 268 vehicles, including 20 ambulances, and 500,000 litres of fuel to the army. To provide additional protection for front-line vehicles, the military can also receive special steel. As well as plates for bulletproof vests, Metinvest-SMC ships them free of charge on official request. And more than 31,000 first aid kits and tourniquets are helping to save the lives of defenders on the front.
Recently, the military received new scarce equipment from Metinvest: 15 satellite artillery-fire guidance systems
Metinvest steel has been used to manufacture 76,000 anti-tank hedgehogs, as well as other products needed on the front line: mini-bastions, sapper cats for remote demining and field stoves. There are also plans to produce around 5,000 different metal items in partnership with Ukrtransgaz.
One of the Group’s largest initiatives is the Saving Lives humanitarian project, created in coordination with the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation. More than 294,000 Ukrainians have already received food and hygiene products. During the war, more than 3,900 tonnes of vital goods have been delivered to Ukraine from abroad. The project has involved 189 companies from all over the world, including Germany, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands, Spain, the US, the UK, Switzerland, Greece and the UAE.
Support has been provided to 37 communities in the Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kirovograd and Zaporizhzhia regions. Help is given to vulnerable categories of citizens, families of Metinvest’s mobilised employees and beneficiaries, veterans of the Group’s enterprises, people in sheltered areas and residents of de-occupied territories.
The medical sector is also receiving strong support as part of Saving Lives. Since the beginning of the war, EUR240,000 of medicines, consumables and equipment have been delivered to Ukrainian hospitals. This will enable doctors to help more than 70,000 people.
In addition, humanitarian cargo is being delivered to hospitals in Zaporizhzhia, Kryvyi Rih, Kamianske, Pokrovsk and Avdiivka under a separate programme of Metinvest and the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation.
The total amount of medical aid being supplied under the two projects is almost UAH150 million
Metinvest is also meeting other urgent needs of Ukrainian hospitals. In particular, since the beginning of 2022, it has shipped 1,350 tonnes of oxygen to doctors to treat coronavirus patients and other oxygen-dependent patients.
The Group is also helping residents of front-line regions to prepare for winter. In particular, stoves for heating and cooking are being delivered to shelters in Avdiivka. Also, in Pokrovsk, Metinvest employees are receiving free solid fuel to heat their homes.
In wartime, the Group continues to take care of its team. It is providing comprehensive support to all those who have evacuated to government-controlled territory.
Metinvest has prepared more than 6,000 places of temporary shelter for employees and their families and is helping to equip urban and rural shelters. Since the beginning of the war, its enterprises have set up humanitarian aid collection points, where displaced people can receive basic necessities.
The Group has introduced a separate retraining and employment programme for displaced employees from Mariupol and Avdiivka. Currently, 2,000 vacancies are open for them at Metinvest’s enterprises in Pokrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kryvyi Rih and Kamianske .
The Group provides significant financial support to such employees in the form of various compensation, social benefits, humanitarian aid and guaranteed earnings. At present, more than 4,200 displaced employees are employed.
Employees and their children were also given the opportunity to study at Metinvest Polytechnic, Ukraine’s first metals and mining university, free of charge. This autumn, more than 440 students started their studies in modern engineering and technical specialties.
For employees needing psychological support, the “Metinvest Together!” service is available. Over eight months, specialists have conducted almost 1,500 individual and group consultations.