The first ship of the year with coal from the US for Metinvest arrived in Ukraine

The first ship with coking coal from the USA chartered by Metinvest Group this year has arrived in Ukraine.

The bulk carrier Bison delivered 80,000 tons of coal from the Group’s own enterprise in the USA — United Coal Company (UCC), Metinvest reported.

The coal will help ensure the sustainable operation of the Group’s Ukrainian steel plants after the suspension of the Pokrovskaya Coal Group.

In the future, Metinvest plans to receive one ship with 80,000 tons of American coking coal each month. This will allow it to cover part of the needs of Zaporizhstal and Kametstal.

According to the Group’s CEO Yuriy Ryzhenkov, coal supplies from the USA not only support steel production in Kamianske and Zaporizhzhia, but also provide work for tens of thousands of employees and contractors, the logistics sector, the railway, etc.

“Despite the fact that imported coking coal is more expensive than Ukrainian due to logistics, this is an important step to help the Ukrainian economy,” Ryzhenkov noted.

Earlier, Metinvest suspended the work of the Pokrovskaya Coal Group due to the change in the situation on the front line, electricity shortages and the worsening security situation for employees. Pokrovskaya Coal Group is the only producer of coking coal in Ukraine for the operation of metallurgical enterprises. The enterprise provided a significant share of coking coal for Metinvest’s own consumption, and also supplied significant volumes to consumers both in Ukraine and abroad.

Earlier, USM reported that the construction of two ships made of Ukrainian Metinvest steel was completed in Italy.