Zaporizhstal produced 202,000 tons of rolled steel in July

In July 2024, Zaporizhstal Iron and Steel Works plant increased the production of commercial rolled metal by 3% compared to July 2023 – to 202 thousand tons. This is stated in the press release of the company.

The volume of pig iron production for the month was 261.9 thousand tons, which corresponds to the July 2023 indicator, and steel – 250.8 thousand tons (+4.2% y/y). Compared to the previous month, production of rolled products increased by 10.4%, steel production – by 6%, and pig iron – by 10.5%.

In a monthly comparison, the company’s indicators recovered after a two-month decline. In May, this trend was caused by the shutdown of blast furnace No. 2 for major repairs. The work lasted 6 days, and on May 22, inflation of the unit began. More than 85 million hryvnias have been allocated to the renovation of the blast furnace. At the same time, in June, the company stopped blast furnace No. 4 for overhaul. The works were planned to be performed in the period from June 19 to 26. The total cost of upgrading the unit is estimated at UAH 92 million. During July, major repair works were not carried out, which contributed to the increase in production.

In January-July, the production of rolled products increased by 38.2% compared to the same period in 2023 – up to 1.43 million tons. Pig iron production amounted to 1.79 million tons (+27.1% y/y), and steel – 1.74 million tons (+37.9% y/y).

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2023, Zaporizhstal increased its output by 50.6% compared to 2022, to 7.24 million tons. In particular, the plant produced

• pig iron – 2.72 million tons (+35.3% yoy);
• steel – 2.47 million tons (+65.4%);
• rolled products – 2.05 million tons (+57.2%).

Hostile shelling and destruction, interruptions in the supply of raw materials and energy, and disruption of logistics routes due to the blockade of seaports led to a decrease in Zaporizhstal’s production performance compared to pre-war levels. In particular, in 2021, the plant produced 4.5 million tons of iron, 3.8 million tons of steel and 3.2 million tons of rolled products. In 2023, the plant operated at an average of 70% of its capacity.