The Mariupol steel mills restoration using green technologies is possible in 3-5 years – CEO

After liberation, the city will need a new development strategy, in particular, an industrial one

The restoration of Mariupol Azovstal and Ilyich Iron and Steel Works using green technologies after the liberation of the city may take from 3 to 5 years. This assessment was given by the CEO of the Metinvest group Yuriy Ryzhenkov in interview for the FAQTalks project.

Yuriy Ryzhenkov noted, that from what can be seen in the photo and video, the damage to Azovstal is serious. However, he hopes that it will be possible to resume some production at the steel plant.

«When the Ukrainian military frees Mariupol, when we get there, we will see what can be done about it. We understand that the aggressor’s propaganda is working to tell fables about resuming production at the plant even tomorrow. We don’t see an opportunity for them to restore anything at Azovstal’s production now,» he said.

As for the period of post-war reconstruction, the company previously held archives on the reconstruction of Mariupol and Donetsk after the Second World War. At Azovstal, the first furnace was restored half a year after the release, at the Donetsk Steel Plant – after four months.

«That’s why there are technologies, there is an understanding of how quickly production can be restored. But here we must not forget that we have no desire to restore the old technology that existed at the Ilyich Iron and Steel Works and Azovstal, this is already yesterday. Today, the whole world is moving towards green steel industry, towards electrosteel, and the restoration of our plants in Mariupol will take place in this vein,» Yuriy Ryzhenkov noted.

The CEO of the company explained that the restoration of production using new green technologies will take more time, because it will be necessary to build almost from scratch – it takes 3-5 years.

According to him, the company currently has a vision for the reconstruction of Mariupol. Rinat Akhmetov joined the Mariupol Reborn project, the group has already allocated funds for the operation of this center, which will first of all make it possible to develop a new strategy for the development of the city, in particular, an industrial one.

«You can’t just come and say: now we will completely rebuild Azovstal. Today, Azovstal is a symbol, a fortress. Therefore, we will have to understand what part of steel sector should remain in Mariupol, what it will look like, and what the so-called industrial map of the city should look like. And only then start its reconstruction,» he noted.

According to the CEO of Metinvest, the current role of the company is to be the main partner in creating the design of the future city. In the future, it will change to the role of the main partner in reconstruction, and Mariupol will be a modern city with a developed economy.

As GMK Center reported earlier, Metinvest is currently invests in development projects for the production of direct reduction iron (DRI) in Ukraine and the modernization of production facilities for the transition to this technology.