Metinvest stops the work of Zaporizhstal due to a strike in Russia, which may affect exports

Ukrainian mining and steel group Metinvest has announced that work at its Zaporizhstal metallurgical plant in Zaporizhia has been completely halted after a Russian ballistic missile strike on the company's industrial site killed seven employees and injured 21 others..

The shutdown is expected to have a significant impact on exports of basic cast iron (BPI) and flat rolled products from Ukraine, especially to the United States and other countries. shipment of finished steel to European markets рынки.

According to an official statement from Metinvest, the strike began when workers were heading for shelters immediately after the air raid alert was announced. All seven people killed in the attack were members of the Zaporizhstal team, while the injured employees are receiving the necessary assistance.

Significant damage has been caused to coke and blast furnace production ущерб

The attack also caused significant damage to Metinvest's production facilities in Zaporizhia, affecting power plants and infrastructure, as well as the main and auxiliary facilities of the company's coke and blast furnace production. As a result, Zaporizhstal's operations were completely suspended, while Metinvest's other production sites in Zaporizhia are operating with reduced productivity.

The company's specialists assess the extent of the damage and assess the possibilities and timing of the restoration of production. Emergency recovery work is currently underway.

According to official information from Metinvest, Zaporizhstal is capable of producing up to 4 million tons of BPI per year. As for exports, BPI's supplies were mainly directed to the US market. Zaporizhstal is also a major producer of flat rolled products with an annual production capacity of up to 3.6 million tons of hot-rolled products and 1.2 million tons of cold-rolled products. European countries have become key export destinations for rolled steel produced by the plant after redirecting trade flows from Ukraine following the start of a full-scale Russian invasion in 2022.