The EU increased imports of ferroalloys from Ukraine by 32.4% y/y in the first quarter

In January-March 2023, the European Union increased the import of ferroalloys from Ukraine by 32.4% compared to the same period in 2022 – up to 107.69 thousand tons. In monetary terms, the import of products decreased by 42.5% y/y – to €89 million. This is evidenced by Eurostat’s data.

The largest importers of ferroalloys of Ukrainian production among the EU countries in the first quarter of 2023 were:

• Poland – 95.49 thousand tons (+119.3% compared to January-March 2022);
• Italy – 3.9 thousand tons (-99.9% y/y);
• Romania – 2.09 thousand tons (-43.1% y/y).

In March 2023, EU countries reduced imports of ferroalloys from Ukraine by 35.5% compared to February – to 27.1 thousand tons. Compared to March 2022, deliveries of Ukrainian products to European consumers decreased by 43.2%. The costs of European steelmakers on imports amounted to €21.6 million, which is 75.1% less compared to March last year, and 34.2% less than February 2023.

In March 2023, Poland consumed 26.1 thousand tons of Ukrainian ferroalloys, which is 30.4% less compared to February and 30.5% y/y. In March, Romania reduced the import of ferroalloys from Ukraine by 0.1% m/m, but increased it by 14.1% y/y – up to 0.7 thousand tons. In March, Italy did not import products of Ukrainian production.

As GMK Center reported earlier, ferroalloy enterprises of Ukraine in January-March 2023 reduced production by 2.7 times compared to the same period last year – to 70,000 tons.

Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure at the end of 2022 significantly worsened the situation for the ferroalloy industry, which depends more than others on stable energy supply. As a result of these strikes, the enterprises of the industry temporarily stopped their work partially or completely.

The Pobuzhsky Ferronickel Plant was forced to shut down due to power outages. In addition, the company depends on imported raw materials, so it cannot count on its stable flow due to the blockade of the ports.

Currently, the situation with energy supply has stabilized, therefore ferroalloy plants are increasing production and export of products in accordance with demand.

As GMK Center reported earlier, Ukrainian ferroalloy enterprises in March 2023 increased the export of ferroalloys by 1.2% compared to the previous month –  to 47.7 thousand tons. In January-March 2023, Ukraine exported 144.54 thousand tons of ferroalloys worth $125.33 million.