7 March 2023

In 2022 the total production volumes of Ferrexpo decreased by 46% compared to the previous year.

In his Forbes interview, Ferrexpo director Wolfram Kuoni talked about the current situation in the company, the recent arrest of accounts of Poltava GZK and other problems.

The main problem for the company remains the blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea ports. Before the war, 50% of Ferrexpo's products were shipped by sea to Asian markets - China, Japan, and South Korea. Now these markets are closed.

Another problem is the lack of a stable electricity supply due to russian attacks on the energy infrastructure. In November, the company was forced to stop all four pellet production lines. Currently, only one line is operating, the second is planned to be launched in March.

As for the future, operating performance will depend on when Ukrainian ports will be unblocked and on the situation in the energy sector.

In general, the company plans to increase production compared to the previous year.

Strategic pre-war plans are still in force - to increase production from 12 million tons of pellets to 20 million tons. But due to the war, the implementation of these plans had to be postponed by Ferrexpo.

Currently, almost all investments, except for critical repairs, are frozen.