In January-February, China reduced steel production by 1.5% year-on-year to 166.3 million tons, according to the country’s State Statistics Office.
Pig iron production decreased by 0.5% to 140.75 million tons.
The State Statistics Office traditionally publishes economic indicators for January and February together to avoid data distortion due to long holidays to mark the Lunar New Year, which can fall in both January and February.
In January-February, China exported 16.97 million tons of steel, up 6.7% year-on-year, according to the State Customs Administration.
As reported, in 2024, steel production in China decreased by 1.7% to 1.005 billion tons.
Ukrainian steelmakers increased production of rolled steel in January-February this year by 6.3% year-on-year, up to 957 thousand tons from 900 thousand tons, according to preliminary data.
According to Ukrmetallurgprom on Saturday, steel production during this period increased by 9.9% to 1.183 million tons, and pig iron production by 8.4% to 1.139 million tons.
In February, the company produced 476.9 thousand tons of rolled products, 571.8 thousand tons of steel, and 544.4 thousand tons of pig iron, compared to 480.2 thousand tons of rolled products, 610.8 thousand tons of steel, and 594.8 thousand tons of pig iron in the previous month.
As reported, in 2024, Ukraine increased production of rolled steel by 15.8% year-on-year to 6.222 million tons from 5.372 million tons. During this period, steel production increased by 21.6% to 7.575 million tons, and pig iron production by 18.1% to 7.090 million tons.
In 2023, Ukraine increased production of total rolled products by 0.4% compared to 2022, to 5.372 million tons, but reduced steel production by 0.6% to 6.228 million tons and pig iron by 6.1% to 6.003 million tons.
In 2022, the country reduced production of total rolled products by 72% compared to 2021 to 5.350 million tons, steel by 70.7% to 6.263 million tons, and pig iron by 69.8% to 6.391 million tons.
In 2021, the company produced 21.165 million tons of pig iron (103.6% compared to 2020), 21.366 million tons of steel (103.6%), and 19.079 million tons of rolled products (103.5%).
Metinvest Mining and Metallurgical Group plans to invest almost UAH 5.7 billion in 2025 to develop its Kryvyi Rih mining and processing plants and UAH 2.5 billion in production at Kametstal (Kamianske, Dnipro region), despite the difficulties of wartime.
According to Yuriy Ryzhenkov, Metinvest’s CEO, this is a record amount in recent years, and a significant portion of it will be used to maintain the efficiency of key equipment and technological processes to ensure stable production.
The group’s press release states that its plants in Mariupol and Avdiivka were damaged by enemy shelling and the cities were occupied. Metinvest has also recently suspended operations at Pokrovske Coal Group due to the changing situation on the frontline, electricity shortages and the deteriorating security situation.
The rest of the Group’s assets in Kryvyi Rih, Zaporizhzhia and Kamianske continue to operate at varying levels of utilization, taking into account security, energy, logistics and economic factors. The priority is to take care of employees, and all of the group’s enterprises in Ukraine have bomb shelters.
The CEO added that over the three years of the full-scale invasion, the group has allocated UAH 8.4 billion to help Ukraine and its citizens, including UAH 4.4 billion for the needs of the army as part of the Rinat Akhmetov Steel Front military initiative.
“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 state, and one of the largest donors to the Armed Forces. All of this is thanks to the contribution of every Metinvest employee in Ukraine and abroad. We are united by a common goal – to bring victory closer by all means available. And after that, to become the foundation for post-war reconstruction,” Ryzhenkov said, as quoted by the press service.
It is emphasized that paying taxes is an important contribution to supporting the economy of Ukraine and the frontline regions. As of the end of 2024, Metinvest is the largest taxpayer in the mining and metals industry.
In addition, the Group has set up production for the army, is engaged in mine clearance, has launched mine trawls and allocated resources to purchase equipment, ammunition and machinery for the frontline.
“Metinvest is a vertically integrated group of steel and mining companies. The group’s enterprises are located mainly in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovs’k regions. The main shareholders of the holding are SCM Group (71.24%) and Smart Holding (23.76%), which jointly manage it.
Metinvest Holding LLC is the management company of Metinvest Group.
Zaporizhzhia-based Zaporizhstal Iron and Steel Works increased its rolled steel output by 9.7% year-on-year to 215 thousand tons from 196 thousand tons in January this year.
According to the company’s press release on Tuesday, steel production for the period amounted to 243 thousand tons (January-2023: 235.5 thousand tons), pig iron – 287.7 thousand tons (261 thousand tons).
In December, Zaporizhstal produced 284.7 thousand tons of iron, 245.5 thousand tons of steel, and shipped 234.1 thousand tons of rolled products.
As reported earlier, in 2024, Zaporizhstal increased its rolled steel output by 18.1% compared to 2023 – to 2 million 426.7 thousand tons from 2 million 54.7 thousand tons, steel by 17.2% to 2 million 890.8 thousand tons, and pig iron by 14.2% to 3 million 106.3 thousand tons.
“In 2023, Zaporizhstal increased its rolled products output by 57.2% compared to 2022, up to 2 million 54.7 thousand tons, steel by 65.4%, to 2 million 466.9 thousand tons, and pig iron by 35.3%, to 2 million 718.9 thousand tons.
“Zaporizhstal is one of the largest industrial enterprises in Ukraine, whose products are in great demand among consumers both in the domestic market and in many countries of the world.
“Zaporizhstal is in the process of integration into Metinvest Group, whose major shareholders are System Capital Management (71.24%) and Smart Holding Group (23.76%).
Metinvest Holding LLC is the management company of Metinvest Group.
Cabinet furniture manufacturer Accord Import (Khmelnytsky) will almost triple its production capacity by building a new plant in Khmelnytsky, where it plans to create 140 jobs, according to Dmytro Kysylevsky, deputy chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Economic Development.
“Construction of a new cabinet furniture plant has started in Khmelnytsky. The project’s investor is Accord Import. After the new plant is launched, its production capacity will increase from 420 thousand square meters to 1.2 million square meters of cabinet furniture per month. This will allow the company to enter the top 5 manufacturers of cabinet furniture in Europe,” he wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday.
According to the MP, the amount of investment in the new project is $14 million. The launch of the first production lines is scheduled for July 2025, and the new plant should reach full capacity in September.
Kisilevsky noted that a 1.1 MW solar power plant has been built and an additional 2.8 MW is under construction to meet the electricity needs, and a gas piston plant has been purchased.
“Currently, the existing Accord Import facility is 100% utilized. About 70% of the company’s orders for cabinet furniture come from the international retail chain JYSK, which in 2025 increased the volume of orders for cabinet furniture from Ukraine by a third,” Kysylevsky wrote.
According to the company’s Facebook page, Raiffeisen Bank has extended the term of the credit line under this contract, which was granted at the end of 2023, and the term of the ECA insurance contract for Accord Import.
“Thus, Raif and ECA have supported furniture exports for 2025 to Denmark, the Netherlands, Hungary, Bulgaria, Poland, Sweden, Germany and Spain,” the company wrote.
According to Kysylevsky, Accord Import exports 96% of its products to the EU, and the launch of the new plant will expand the geography of exports to the Middle East, South Asia, and South America.
The MP also clarified that the owners of Accord Import, the Grabar family, started out as furniture importers, while now it is Ukraine’s largest exporter of cabinetry.
He also added that to replace the imports of cellular cardboard used by the company for furniture packaging, another company is currently under construction in Khmelnytsky Oblast to produce this product.
“And the supplier of wooden boards for Accrod Import is Kronospan, which has recently launched a production line in Rivne region,” Kysylevsky added.
According to the Clarirty Project, Accord Import LLC was registered in Khmelnytskyi in August 2015. The company’s authorized capital is UAH 42.105 million, and the owners are Mykola, Ruslan, and Vadym Hrabar in equal shares.
In January-September 2024, the company increased its net profit by 23% compared to the same period in 2023 to UAH 120.6 million, with net revenue growing by 27% to UAH 1 billion 271 million.
Centravis Production Ukraine (Nikopol, Dnipropetrovska oblast, Ukraine), a part of Centravis Ltd. holding, increased production of seamless stainless pipes by 12.6% in 2024 compared to 2023, to 13.7 thousand tons.
This is almost the same growth rate as in 2023, when the company increased production by 12%, Centravis CEO Yuriy Atanasov said during an online press conference on Tuesday. Centravis exported almost all of its products, with exports totaling 13.7 thousand tons.
“Nikopol district is a unique city. It has difficult working and living conditions. And 2024 was another year of escalating hostilities. A huge number of drones are killing our city, targeting the infrastructure to cut off water and electricity. Our constant priority is to resume work after each attack,” said Atanasov.
At the same time, the CEO drew attention to the inadequate response to the situation at the enterprise: “There are a lot of promises, but no concrete actions. There are no decisions on lending to the company, no one is going to provide a commodity loan.”
“The second issue is booking. No one comes to Nikopol. We have constant demands for mobilization, but 50% booking is not enough. And the last problem is litigation with the authorities, with the tax office, regarding VAT refunds. There are court decisions that the government does not enforce, the state ignores the decisions. There are only promises,” the CEO stated.
He clarified that the company cannot refund more than EUR 6 million of VAT to finance its operations. “At the same time, we increase our production by about 10% annually. And we not only survive in such difficult conditions, but also advance our strategic projects.
The company plans to increase production to 15 thousand tons in 2025.
Centravis CFO Alexander Joseph said that the company invested EUR 3 million in production in 2023, EUR 2 million in 2022, and plans to invest EUR 4 million in 2025.
According to the information note, the top 5 countries consuming Ukrainian seamless pipes made by Centravis are Germany, the United States, Italy, Austria, and Spain. In total, Centravis exported its products to 39 countries, including Oman, South Korea, Australia, Uruguay, etc.
“It takes a lot of work to achieve a positive result, and even more to maintain the growth rate for the second year in a row, especially in such a difficult time as now and not far from the front line. But our team gives 100% and even more. That is why we have such results and continue to grow,” said Centravis CEO.
According to him, in addition to quantitative indicators, the company managed to make many qualitative changes and implement interesting and notable projects last year. In particular, Centravis produced 28 tons of pipes by special order for SpaceX. The company also received an order for seamless pipes for a new hydrogen production plant in Ulsan, South Korea. The company continued cooperation with Ferrari, a sports car manufacturer, and completed several large orders for the US market.
Traditionally, Centravis represented the Ukrainian industry with its own exposition at the international exhibition Adipec in Abu Dhabi.
“We are not resting on our laurels. Our medium-term priorities include increasing the share of innovative products in our portfolio, i.e. those that would be protected by intellectual property rights and effectively solve our customers’ problems. We will continue to work and do our best to help the country survive and preserve opportunities for post-war development,” Atanasov said.
Last year, Centravis paid UAH 564.7 million in taxes and duties, or UAH 16 million more than in the previous year.
As reported, in 2023, Centravis increased its production by 12% to 12.2 thousand tons. More than 98% of its products are exported.
Currently, Centravis is one of the world’s ten largest producers of seamless stainless steel pipes.
“Founded in 2000, Centravis is one of the world’s ten largest producers of seamless stainless steel pipes. Its main production facilities are located in Nikopol (Dnipropetrovska oblast). In 2023, the company opened a branch in Uzhhorod.
Centravis Holding Ltd. was established on the basis of Nikopol Stainless Pipe Plant CJSC, service and trading companies of Production and Commercial Enterprise YUVIS LLC. Its shareholders are members of the Atanasov family. Centravis Ltd. owns 100% of the shares in Centravis Production Ukraine.
