The head of one of Ukraine’s largest steel companies has called on the European Union to lift import restrictions on products made in the country. Yuriy Ryzhenkov, chief executive of Metinvest, said Ukraine had been “bundled together” with measures aimed at curbing cheap imports from countries such as China.
In an interview, Ryzhenkov described the recently imposed tariffs on steel imports to the EU as “unfair”. He said they had been introduced “without any consideration for the situation Ukraine is in”, and he called for “at least a carve out” that would give Ukraine access to the EU market.
Metinvest chief calls for an EU carve-out
Ryzhenkov said Ukraine was being treated in the same way as every other importer into the bloc. “I think it’s unfair that Ukraine has been treated in the same way as all of the other importers into the European Union,” he said. He also pointed to the war with Russia as a reason Ukraine should be treated differently.
He argued that access to the European market was essential for the sector. “Access to the European market is crucial for survival,” he said, adding that the restrictive measures “don’t help”.
A spokesperson for the European Commission said the EU had “took into account the difficult situation” of Ukraine when shaping its steel policy. The spokesperson said Ukraine’s steel quota guaranteed exports of the metal, although at a level lower than in previous years. The spokesperson also said the bloc had offered compensation to its largest suppliers, which included Ukraine.
EU steel cap and quotas explained
The bloc has recently moved to restrict steel imports in an effort to protect its own manufacturers. It has capped the amount of steel that can enter the EU tax free at 18.3 million tonnes a year, a 47% reduction from 2024 levels.
The policy also includes some country-specific quotas. Its overall aim is to reduce the volume of steel entering the bloc, because member states are struggling to compete with cheap imports from China and Turkey. A free-trade agreement between the EU and Ukraine is in place, but it does not prevent the EU from introducing separate trade protection measures.
The Ukrainian steel industry estimates that steel exports to the EU could ultimately fall by about 50 to 60%.
War strikes hit Ukraine’s steel output and workforce
Steel is a cornerstone of Ukraine’s economy. Before Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, metallurgy and mining accounted for roughly 10% of national income and a third of exports, and the EU is the country’s top customer. The industry has since suffered from continued Russian bombardment.
All of Ukraine’s steel mills have been hit at points since the conflict began, and Ryzhenkov said strikes had “intensified significantly recently”. He said that at one point in September there was “no single tonne of steel produced” in Ukraine, the first time in about 150 years. He also said almost 800 Metinvest workers had been killed since the war began.
Ryzhenkov said the company had “improved the covered areas” at its mills where workers can shelter during air raids. He said the company could design procedures and ask staff to follow them, but added: “Unfortunately, you cannot cover a whole steel mill to avoid it being damaged.”
Looking ahead, Ryzhenkov said he expected the coming winter to be “one of the hardest in our history”. He warned that the company lacked logistics to reach any market other than the EU. “Cutting our available market by 60%, that doesn’t help for the industry to survive,” he said.
