February 19, 2024
Metinvest Group has published its operating report for the fourth quarter of 2023.
According to the report, the group's steel output during the quarter amounted to 494,000 tons, which is almost equal to the average since the beginning of 2023.
In the results, the group reflects only production at Kametstal, while smelting at Zaporizhstal (Metinvest's share is 50%) is not included in the total data.
During the reporting quarter, Zaporizhstal produced 722,000 tons of steel - on the level of previous quarter.
In comparison with the output volume in the fourth quarter of 2022, steel production at both enterprises increased quite significantly - at Kametstal by two times, at Zaporizhstal by two and a half times.
The production volumes of both Kametstal and Zaporizhstal in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023 were significantly affected by power outages caused by Russian shelling of the Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
In total, in 2023, steel production at Kametstal increased by 30% compared to the previous year (up to 2 million tons), while output at Metinvest in general, due to the production of the Mariupol plants in January-February 2022, decreased by 31%.
In 2023, Zaporizhstal increased crude steel output by 65% to 2.5 million tons.
Production of iron ore concentrate by Metinvest increased in the reporting quarter compared to the previous one by 29% and amounted to 3.6 million tons. The main reason is the resumption of ore exports through the deep-sea ports of Ukraine, which allowed the group to gradually increase the volume of export shipments.
We expect that if the temporary export corridor from Ukrainian ports continues to operate, the volume of production and export of ore by the group will continue to grow.
In total, for 2023, the production of iron ore by Metinvest amounted to 11.1 million tons, compared to 10.7 million tons in 2022.
The output of coal concentrate during the fourth quarter of 2023 amounted to 1.137 million tons, which is 11% lower q-o-q. This is the second quarter in a row, in which a decrease in coal production is recorded - due to a decrease in output at the Ukrainian Pokrovsk Coal.
The risks for further coal production at Pokrovsk Coal are obvious – the group's mining enterprises are mainly located in the Donetsk region, relatively close to the war zone.
In total, in 2023, Metinvest produced 5.5 million tons of coal, 10% more than in 2022.
Coke production in the reporting year amounted to 1.2 million tons (-25% compared to the previous year, primarily due to the loss of the Avdeevka Coke Plant and Azovstal).