Ukraine’s steel industry is approaching a critical breaking point as Russian attacks cripple production facilities and tighter European Union import quotas threaten access to its most important export market, according to Yuriy Ryzhenkov, chief executive of Metinvest, the country’s largest steelmaker.
Ryzhenkov, who leads a workforce of approximately 33,700 people, said the company had endured repeated bombardments, the deaths of hundreds of colleagues and mounting operational challenges since Russia’s full-scale invasion began more than four years ago. More than 8,000 Metinvest employees are serving in Ukraine’s armed forces.
The pressure intensified in August and September 2026, when attacks forced the company to halt operations at both of its steel mills. Ryzhenkov said 14 people were killed at the facilities during the bombing campaign, marking the company’s largest single-attack loss since 2023.
EU Steel Quotas Add to Wartime Economic Strain
Beyond the destruction caused by Russia’s invasion, Metinvest is confronting new trade restrictions introduced by the European Union in July 2026. The key steel tariff-rate quota allocated to Ukraine was reduced by 60%, a change the Ukrainian think tank GMK Center estimates could cut the country’s steel exports to the EU by 1.3 million metric tons annually.
The restrictions have created additional difficulties for an industry already struggling with disrupted transport routes, unreliable energy supplies and reduced access to workers. With Ukrainian seaports blockaded, the EU has become an essential market for steel producers seeking to maintain exports and generate revenue.
Ryzhenkov criticised the decision to apply the new quotas without adequately accounting for Ukraine’s exceptional wartime circumstances. He argued that the restrictions were particularly severe because the country had limited alternatives for transporting and selling its steel.
The economic decline has been substantial. Ukraine’s steel production fell from 21 million metric tons in 2021 to 7.4 million metric tons in 2025. Over the same period, export value dropped from $22 billion to $6 billion, while tax revenues declined from $3.5 billion to $870 million.
Continued Russian attacks on factories, energy infrastructure and railway networks are also weakening steel supplies needed by Ukraine’s armed forces.
Thousands of Jobs and a Strategic Industry at Stake
Ryzhenkov warned that steelmaking could become unsustainable without reliable access to export markets. The industry typically requires capacity utilisation above 90% to remain profitable, even under normal conditions, while wartime disruption makes long-term investment and commercial planning increasingly difficult.
Asked whether Ukraine could lose its steelmaking industry entirely, he said its disappearance was almost inevitable if nothing changed and Ukrainian producers were prevented from participating fully in the European market.
The consequences would extend beyond industrial output. Metinvest employs tens of thousands of people and supports families across Ukraine, while thousands of its workers are serving in the military.
For Ukraine, preserving steel production is therefore both an economic priority and a matter of maintaining industrial capacity during the war. The combination of Russian bombardment and reduced access to European buyers threatens to deepen an already severe decline in one of the country’s key industries.
