Private companies should be involved in the Ukrainian military industry – CEO of Metinvest

Private domestic companies should be involved in the military-industrial complex (MIC) of Ukraine to increase production for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This opinion was expressed by Yuriy Ryzhenkov, CEO of Metinvest Group, in an interview with Forbes.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Metinvest has been producing a large number of products for the military, including mobile dugouts, body armor and mine trawls. At the same time, the company’s capacity is limited due to a lack of staff.

At the same time, the company is ready to deploy additional capacity and provide the military with the required volume of products if the government creates an order and provides support.

«We produce a lot of products for the Armed Forces – mobile bunkers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, anti-mine trawls and other equipment. However, it cannot now be said that this work is being carried out on an industrial scale. In fact, we do it in our spare time. We made only 8 minesweepers, and the army needs hundreds,» said the CEO of the company.

Yuriy Ryzhenkov expressed hope that the Ukrainian military-industrial complex will grow faster and will attract private companies to it. If the company receives an order from the state, it will open new factories, hire employees, and produce the same mine trawls in the volumes needed by the state, he added.

«I hope that Oleksandr Kamyshin and Rustem Umerov will be able to involve private companies in the Military Industry. I am not talking about the production of tanks, we cannot do that. But what we can do, we are ready to do in the necessary volumes,» Ryzhenkov summed up.

As GMK Center reported, Metinvest since the beginning of the war in Ukraine systematically supports both the state and the military. During this period, UAH 4.2 billion was allocated to military and civilian needs. More than UAH 2 billion has been allocated to support the Ukrainian army.