Prices for construction materials have risen by 20-25% since the start of 2026, and there is a trend toward further increases; to ensure the effective operation of the “eOselya” state program, price limits must be updated, according to Sergey Pilipenko, CEO of PSG “Kovalskaya.”
In comments to the “Interfax-Ukraine” agency, he noted that the construction market has shown a gradual recovery over the past two years, with annual growth of 12-15%, indicating that businesses are adapting and that supply and demand are gradually balancing out. Currently, as in recent years, there is no shortage of construction materials. Production capacity even occasionally exceeds effective demand, so the market as a whole is balanced.
“In certain segments, situational shortages are possible due to power outages, staff shortages, or a lack of raw materials. But overall, the market fully meets the demand for construction materials. “Despite the harsh winter, our forecast for 2026 remains quite confident and optimistic: we expect growth of about 15% in volume terms across virtually all of Kovalskaya’s business segments. At the same time, prices remain a key factor influencing the market,” said Pilipenko.
According to him, the market is already feeling their significant rise due to global trends, particularly the rise in oil and fuel prices, as well as domestic economic challenges. It all began with a revision of cement prices, but since the start of the year, prices across the entire supply chain have risen by approximately 20–25%, and this is not yet the limit.
“We are currently seeing a rapid rise in prices for construction products and services due to a number of factors: rising costs for logistics, energy, and labor shortages are significantly impacting the direct cost of most products. Fluctuations in the national currency’s exchange rate are exacerbating this trend, as part of the cost structure involves imports. In any case, the impact of all these factors will be significant. By the end of the year, price increases for construction products could reach 30–35%, and some suppliers are already reporting even higher figures,” said Pilipenko.
He emphasized that this will have a significant impact on purchasing power and, in the medium term, may affect the dynamics and volume of construction: costs will rise, and consequently, the price per square meter will increase in both the residential segment and state-funded projects.
“Given this, the state program ‘eOselya’ will require a revision of its limits. Currently, the program is based on an average maximum cost of 48,000 UAH per square meter (66,000 UAH in Kyiv) and has certain restrictions on the maximum amount. However, if construction materials continue to rise in price, the limits will have to be increased by at least 20–25%. Otherwise, only a very limited number of projects will qualify for the program,” Pilipenko concluded.
The Kovalskaya Industrial and Construction Group has been operating in Ukraine’s construction market since 1956. It unites more than 20 enterprises in the fields of raw material extraction, product manufacturing, and construction. Its products are represented by the brands “Beton ot Kovalskaya,” “Avenue,” and Siltek. Kovalskaya’s enterprises operate in the Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Lviv, and Chernihiv regions. The aerated concrete plant in the Kherson region has been out of operation since the start of the occupation.
According to Fixygen, the shareholders of Boryspil Building Materials Plant plan to hold a general shareholders’ meeting on April 30. The company operates in the building materials sector and specializes in the production of concrete products for construction. On its corporate website, the company also lists concrete and mortar, reinforced concrete products, floor slabs, piles, lintels, and other building structures among its main areas of focus.
Boryspil Building Materials Plant PJSC is registered in Boryspil, Kyiv Oblast. According to public records, the company was founded on January 26, 1995; its authorized capital is UAH 217,100, and its director is Igor Shalimov. Its primary business activity is the production of concrete products for construction.
According to beneficiary data, Vladimir Shalimov holds a 63% stake and Igor Shalimov holds a 35% stake, giving them direct controlling influence in the company.
According to Opendatabot, the company’s revenue in 2025 was 463.58 million UAH, net profit was 15.57 million UAH, and assets at year-end were 188.0 million UAH. In 2024, the company’s revenue was 553.21 million UAH, and net profit was 9.27 million UAH.
The TEST LLC testing center continues to operate at full capacity and conducts fire tests, and allegations of a “ghost laboratory” and “fake protocols” are unfounded and appear to be a coordinated information attack, said Andriy Bondar, head of the company’s laboratory.
“The testing center is operating as usual. All work is carried out in accordance with the requirements of current regulatory documents, in accordance with the scope of accreditation. Fire tests are carried out in compliance with approved standardized methods and protocols are drawn up in accordance with the requirements of the international standard DSTU EN ISO/IEC 17025. Any statements that the center does not exist, that tests are not being conducted, or that the protocols are not valid do not correspond to the actual circumstances,” Bondar said.
The company clarified that, according to the scope of accreditation issued by the National Accreditation Agency of Ukraine, the testing center had several sites. Some of the tests were conducted at the site in Brovary, and some were transferred to the west of the country for security reasons due to regular rocket attacks back in 2024.
TEST LLC also stated that the spread of allegations about “fake protocols” and a “phantom laboratory” is taking place in the context of recent publications directed against Kovlar Group LLC and the materials it produces, and has signs of deliberate discrediting of both the manufacturer and the testing center.
“We are open to cooperation with state authorities and are ready to provide all necessary documentation upon request from the relevant authorities. The center’s activities are carried out exclusively within the framework of Ukrainian legislation and the accreditation requirements of the National Agency. Reputation and professional responsibility are our priorities,” Bondar emphasized.
TEST LLC positions itself as a leading specialized center in the field of testing building materials and structures in Ukraine. The company reports that it has the material and technical resources for full-scale fire testing of structures, engineering communications, and fire protection materials, as well as 25 years of experience in the fire testing market.
Prices for building materials have risen by 10–15% since the beginning of 2025, according to Sergey Pylypenko, CEO of the Kovalska Group (Kyiv), in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
“On average, prices are rising at the rate of inflation—from 10 to 15%, depending on the product. The most expensive products are those that are cement-intensive, energy-intensive, or labor-intensive,” he said.
In particular, according to Pylypenko, concrete has risen in price by about 7-10% year-on-year, reinforced concrete products by 12-15%, and paving slabs by almost 20%.
Gravel and sand showed the lowest increase in price, up to 10%.
According to the expert, limited demand and the absence of large infrastructure projects do not allow prices to rise in this market. “The market (for road works) is very inactive, so everyone is trying to compete on price to the last,” he explained.
According to Pylypenko, human resources showed the highest growth, with wages increasing by 25% or more.
“It is becoming increasingly difficult to find qualified people, and this is the reason why it is sometimes difficult for us to fulfill some orders as quickly as we would like. All this actually affects GDP, the competitiveness of the domestic economy, and our products. But it also encourages us to adopt more automated technologies, invest in IT solutions, improve processes, and upgrade to more modern equipment,” he said, citing the plant in Rozvadov as an example, where the entire production volume will be provided by only 40 employees.
The Kovalskaya Industrial and Construction Group has been operating in the Ukrainian construction market since 1956. It unites more than 20 enterprises in the field of raw material extraction, product manufacturing, and construction. Its products are represented by the brands Beton vid Kovalskoi, Avenue, and Siltek. Kovalskaya’s enterprises operate in the Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Lviv, and Chernihiv regions. The aerated concrete plant in the Kherson region has not been operating since the beginning of the occupation.
Demand for building materials slowed in 2024 after a significant increase last year due to low consumer solvency and insufficient funding for government recovery programs, the Association of Manufacturers of Building Materials noted.
“In general, in terms of estimated volumes, the first half of 2024 almost correlates with the figures for 2023, meaning that there was no miracle in the increase in demand. Sales of specific products today directly depend on the activity of small private developers. Large and truly solvent public or private consumers of wholesale volumes exist in single copies,” Konstantin Saliy, President of the All-Ukrainian Union of Building Materials Manufacturers, told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, individuals make up the bulk of real sales of building materials for which payment has been completed. At the same time, the programs “5-7-9”, “eHouse” and “eRecovery” stimulate unstable increases in demand, which allow keeping the sales of materials at the level of 27-50% of pre-war 2021, the expert noted.
“Under such conditions, the market climate is not expected to improve until the end of 2024,” added Saliy.
Meanwhile, the demand for aerated concrete is driven mainly by apartment construction, which is supported by recovery programs, said Oleg Syrotin, director of the All-Ukrainian Association of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Producers.
“Today, the demand for aerated concrete has decreased by almost 60% compared to the pre-war period. The main consumer of our products, individuals, are hardly building any houses. The industry is surviving mainly due to multi-apartment construction, in particular through government programs for restoration and compensation to the affected people,” he said.
According to the expert, the growth in demand would be positively affected by the expansion of the eHouse state program to low-rise projects of small developers, as this sector was the main consumer of aerated concrete before the war.
“Aerated concrete is used in new construction, so the state program eHouse is the most effective for us. The second most effective program is eRestoration for severely damaged facilities where new walls need to be built. The impact of these programs is certainly positive, but we would like to see more financial resources from the state and banks for them,” explained Syrotin.
According to Ukrcement, cement consumption in January-June 2024 increased to 3 million tons, up 21.3% year-on-year. At the same time, the association’s forecast for the rest of the year is restrained.
“The biggest problem for cement producers is demand. Demand for products has fallen sharply, which means that revenues have also fallen, while costs, on the contrary, are rising. The forecast for cement consumption in 2024 is quite restrained. We had a significant jump in 2023. We produced 7.4 million tons of cement. This year we had a difficult summer in terms of electricity. Therefore, if we reach 8 million tons this year, it will be a very good result,” explained Lyudmyla Krypka, Executive Director of Ukrcement Association.
Demand is significantly affected by the situation at the frontline, as well as government support for the industry, the expert noted. According to her, the policy of subsidies and additional benefits from the state is important to ensure the stable development of the market.
The share of imported construction materials in the Ukrainian market increased from 14% in 2021 to 23% in 2023, and the domestic construction materials market needs systematic support from the state.
This opinion was expressed by Volodymyr Vlasiuk, CEO of Ukrpromvneshexpertiza, Chairman of the CCIU Committee on Industrial Modernization, during the round table “Building Materials. Preparedness for Market Needs for Recovery” held at the Interfax-Ukraine news agency on Tuesday.
“The share of imports in covering domestic consumption has increased from 14% in 202 to 23% in 2023. Thus, even the funds that go through the public procurement procedure can be largely used for imports. More research is needed on individual materials, but the upward trend in the use of imported materials in a developed industry is generally negative for the economy,” Vlasiuk said.
He said that the second study of the construction materials market and its ability to meet the country’s needs since the beginning of the war is currently underway.
“The situation is changing dynamically. But there are still no glass production plants, as before. There are several (investment) projects, but they are not yet operational. As for such commodities as PVC, production has resumed and capacities have increased. New capacities are being built in the cement industry. But electrical equipment is still not available, as it was before the war. This is still a field for investment projects that should be stimulated by the state,” Vlasiuk said.
The expert highlighted key issues that businesses will not be able to solve without government involvement.
“In terms of stimulating demand, the role of the state is huge, as it increases procurement (for defense and recovery projects). It is extremely important that these funds are not spent on imported materials. We understand the extraordinary conditions in which Ukraine exists, we are at war. Therefore, in accordance with international law, we can apply, for example, Article 21 of the WTO, which allows a country to temporarily suspend its obligations assumed when joining the WTO,” Vlasiuk said.
He emphasized the need to focus on localization, purchasing materials (for budgetary or donor funds) only if at least some of them are produced in Ukraine.
The issue of booking specialists is also important. “It is necessary to find a balance between the needs of the economy and the frontline. Both areas are necessary for the country’s sustainability,” he said.
Another key task is to provide autonomous energy supply. “Obviously, it is necessary to move to a model of autonomous energy supply, for example, from alternative sources, primarily solar power plants. The state, together with partners, should offer good, cost-effective tools, as this requires a significant amount of funds,” Vlasiuk said.
