ArcelorMittal calls for fair pricing in the electricity market

ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih PJSC calls for fair pricing in the Ukrainian electricity market. This is stated in a column by Serhiy Lavrynenko, Deputy CEO for Metallurgical Production at the company, for Delo.ua.

He notes that the company is currently on the brink of survival. This is not about the challenges of wartime, to which it has managed to adapt by restructuring its production chains. Production in Ukraine today is losing its meaning due to uncontrolled changes in electricity tariffs.

In 2021, electricity accounted for 7% of the cost of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih’s products, and in 2025, due to the dramatic increase in tariffs, this figure reached 20%. At the same time, the company cannot raise prices for its products, as their cost is determined by global markets.

ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih has been recording losses for three years in a row and continues to operate thanks to the help of the ArcelorMittal group. In the context of the war, the company has already invested more than $1 billion in the Kryvyi Rih enterprise.

Serhiy Lavrynenko outlined the reasons for high electricity prices for Ukrainian industry.

First, he noted the absence of a full-fledged electricity market.

«More than half of all generation is in the hands of one player, NAEK Energoatom, which dictates prices and is in good financial condition. Thus, in 2023-2024, Energoatom accumulated UAH 60 billion in undistributed profits due to higher energy prices,» the column says.

Another factor contributing to the highest prices in Europe is the lack of access to cheaper imported electricity.

«Ukrenergo limits crossings with Europe, arguing that this is for technical safety reasons. But this is not only a violation of competition — it is a death sentence for industry. After all, we cannot buy electricity where it is cheaper in the quantities we need,» explains the deputy general director for metallurgical production at AMKR.

He adds that, unfortunately, no one is intervening in these processes — neither the regulator nor the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

In 2025, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih planned to increase production and finally break even. Since the second quarter, the company has been operating two blast furnaces, which could produce 3-3.2 million tons of pig iron per year, even despite the shortage of qualified personnel. However, if electricity prices remain high, the metallurgical plant will again be forced to adjust its production plans and reduce production, returning to operating with only one blast furnace.

Serhiy Lavrynenko notes that the company is not asking for preferences, only transparent rules and understandable pricing in the electricity market.

ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, the largest mining and metallurgical enterprise in Ukraine and one of the largest industrial employers, needs access to electricity imports, the ability to plan purchases in advance, and price predictability. If this is not done, the largest international investor in the country’s history may cease operations, more than 100,000 jobs in supply chains, and not only in Kryvyi Rih, will be lost, and the state’s investment reputation will be undermined.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in April this year, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih resumed operation of blast furnace (BF) No. 6, which had been mothballed in the fall of 2024 due to the market crisis and high electricity tariffs.