First bulk carrier with American coal for Metinvest arrives in Ukraine

The first US coking coal vessel chartered by Metinvest Group in 2025 arrived in Ukraine. The Bison bulk carrier delivered 80,000 tons of coal from United Coal Company (UCC), a group-owned enterprise located in the Appalachian region of the United States. This delivery will help stabilize the operations of Ukrainian steel mills Zaporizhstal and Kametstal after the Pokrovske Coal Group was forced to shut down, according to a press release.

Pokrovske Group, Ukraine’s only producer of coking coal, halted operations in early January 2025 due to escalating security risks caused by intensified fighting, power supply disruptions, and shifts in the frontline situation. Prior to that, it had been supplying a significant portion of Metinvest’s and other consumers’ needs in Ukraine and abroad.

“Despite the challenging conditions in the Ukrainian steel industry due to the aggressor’s ongoing invasion, we have mobilised our resources to ensure the industry’s operation. Supplies of US coal will not only support steel production at Kamianske and Zaporizhzhia, but will also provide jobs for tens of thousands of employees and contractors, the logistics sector and the railway, tax revenues to the Ukrainian budget and a significant share of Ukraine’s foreign currency exports. Although coking coal import is more expensive than its domestic equivalent due to logistics, this is an important step to help the Ukrainian economy,” said Yuriy Ryzhenkov, CEO of Metinvest Group.

The Group plans to import one ship with 80 thousand tons of American coal per month. This will partially compensate for the loss of Ukrainian coking coal capacities.

“UCC remains committed to supporting the Group and contributing to economic stability and resilience in Ukraine by ensuring consistent coal deliveries that will enable uninterrupted steel production in the country,” said United Coal Company CEO John Schroder.

In 2013-2024, coking coal production in Ukraine decreased by 74% and coke production by almost 85%. Currently, most of the mines and coke plants remain in the non-government controlled areas – 64% of the total.

GMK Center estimates that Ukraine needs 3.2 million tons of coke per year to maintain current production levels, namely up to 6.5 million tons of BOF and open-hearth steel and 1.3 million tons of merchant pig iron, of which up to 20% was imported in 2024. In 2025, imports are likely to increase due to the shutdown of the Pokrovske coal group. In particular, in January-February, imports of coke and semi-coke (HS 2704) increased by 87.7% compared to the same period in 2024, to 155.93 thousand tons.