Ferroalloys exports from Ukraine did not exceed 1 thousand tons in Q1

In January-March 2024, Ukrainian ferroalloy enterprises exported record low volumes of products – 0.69 thousand tons compared to 144.54 thousand tons a year earlier (-99.5% y/y). This is evidenced by the data of the State Customs Service.

Export revenue for the period amounted to $2.42 million, down 98.1% compared to January-March 2023 ($125.33 million).

In March, Ukraine’s ferroalloy industry exported 0.15 thousand tons of products (-51.8% m/m, -99.7% y/y) for $607 thousand (-36.2% m/m, -98.5% y/y), a record low.

The bulk of products were shipped to Poland, accounting for 74.1% of total exports in monetary terms. Another 13.8% was exported to Uzbekistan and 4.8% to the Netherlands.

The absence of exports, which have been gradually declining since August last year, is explained by the complete shutdown of Ukraine’s ferroalloy industry since November 2023, in particular due to proximity to the front line, falling prices for ferroalloys, high production costs and problems with reserving personnel from mobilization.

The combination of these factors led to a 57.4% decrease in ferroalloy production in 2023 compared to 2022. In 2024, according to Sergiy Kudryavtsev, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Ferroalloy Association UkrFA, the state of Ukraine’s ferroalloy industry will depend on three factors: shelling, logistics, and available electricity.

Currently, Ukrainian ferroalloy companies do not have clear plans to resume production in the near term. Pokrovsk GOK noted that the company does not plan to resume production in April 2024, but there are some optimistic forecasts. At the same time, ZFP has no decisions on the start of operations.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2023, Ukraine reduced exports of ferroalloys by 4.9% compared to 2022, to 344.2 thousand tons. Compared to the pre-war year of 2021, shipments of ferroalloys abroad decreased by 48.5%, or 324.4 thousand tons. Poland was the largest consumer of Ukrainian-made ferroalloys in 2023, accounting for 52.8% in monetary terms. Turkey accounted for 14.1% of export shipments and the Netherlands for 8.5%.