Ukraine could lose up to $200 million per month due to closed ports and new EU restrictions on the steel industry, The Page reported, citing analysts\u2019 estimates.<\/p>\n
According to GMK Center, Ukraine is already losing around $150\u2013200 million in export revenue every month solely because of the decline in maritime exports of mining and metallurgical products.<\/p>\n
The problem intensified following August attacks on two key steelmaking companies. After a strike on August 11, Zaporizhstal suspended operations. In 2025, the plant accounted for more than 43% of Ukraine\u2019s steel production. Five days later, missiles struck ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, damaging its power and blast-furnace operations and partially halting production processes.<\/p>\n
The publication notes that losses are also mounting at companies that have not suffered direct damage. Due to difficulties with maritime exports, Pivdennyi GOK suspended mining operations, while other Metinvest mining plants in Kryvyi Rih could cut production by around 30% in August compared with their average 2025 levels.<\/p>\n
Journalists point out that maritime routes are critical to the industry because of the structure of its exports. According to GMK Center, Black Sea ports handled around 50% of iron ore exports, about 95% of pig iron exports and roughly half of steel exports.<\/p>\n
\u201cRail and European ports cannot fully replace these routes. Alternative routes have lower capacity and significantly higher logistics costs. For bulk cargo such as iron ore, additional transportation costs can completely eliminate the economic rationale for exports,\u201d the publication said.<\/p>\n
The situation is further aggravated by rising railway costs. Ukrzaliznytsia\u2019s freight tariffs increased by 30% in August, while according to Metinvest, the shift to overland routes has already increased the share of railway costs in the production cost of steel products by two to three times.<\/p>\n
At the same time, access to the European market has also narrowed. The new EU quotas have reduced Ukraine\u2019s steel export opportunities by approximately 60% compared with actual 2025 volumes. Another barrier is the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), with the potential payment estimated at \u20ac50\u2013100 per tonne of steel.<\/p>\n
\u201cPorts are needed by steelmakers not only for exports. After the loss of the Pokrovsk coal supply base, around 80% of coking coal imports arrived by sea. Rerouting these supplies through European ports and railways could approximately double logistics costs and increase the final cost of coal by about 15%,\u201d journalists wrote.<\/p>\n
The authors conclude that the industry is simultaneously losing production capacity due to Russian attacks, access to low-cost maritime logistics because of the port blockade, and part of its foreign markets because of EU quotas and CBAM.<\/p>\n
Industry companies believe that restoring safe operations at Black Sea ports should be the top priority.<\/p>\n
\u201cOther measures needed to save the industry include revising railway tariffs, easing CBAM requirements for Ukraine, expanding EU quotas, compensating part of the cost of alternative logistics, and supporting the recovery of major industrial enterprises,\u201d the authors concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":152130,"menu_order":0,"template":"","newscat":[9],"newstag":[],"issues":[],"class_list":["post-152129","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","newscat-novosti"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/152129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/152130"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"newscat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newscat?post=152129"},{"taxonomy":"newstag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newstag?post=152129"},{"taxonomy":"issues","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issues?post=152129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}