Reports show that Ukraine’s steel output has increased by 21.6% in 2024, reaching 7.58 million metric tons, according to its producers’ union on Thursday. However, the ongoing fight near the country’s sole coking coal mine poses a significant threat to production levels this year.
The steel industry has already faced severe setbacks since Russia’s invasion on February 24, 2022, which caused the destruction of key steel plants.
Once a major producer and exporter of steel, Ukraine saw its output plummet by 70.7% in 2022, down to 6.3 million tons, and further decline to 6 million tons in 2023.
The steelmakers’ union spoke about the potential closure of the Pokrovsk mine, which is also the only coking coal mine that could cause steel production to slump to 2-3 million metric tons in 2025.
Advancing Russian forces are now less than 2 km from Ukraine’s only coking coal mine, according to military analyst DeepState.
Steelmaker Metinvest BV, the mine’s owner, revealed last month that some operations had already been suspended, with sources reporting the mine is operating at only 50% capacity.
Producers have claimed that they hope to find coking coal from elsewhere in Ukraine should Russian troops seize the mine, but imports would inevitably be needed, raising costs.