Metinvest Chief Urges EU to Exempt Ukraine From Steel Import Curbs
Yuriy Ryzhenkov says EU measures aimed at cheap Chinese and Turkish steel unfairly treat Ukraine and call for a carve-out for Ukrainian producers
By AXY Business Desk ·
Key points
- Metinvest chief Yuriy Ryzhenkov says Ukraine has been unfairly “bundled together” with other countries in new EU steel import measures.
- The EU has capped tax-free steel imports at 18.3 million tonnes a year, a 47% cut from 2024 levels, to protect its own producers.
- Ryzhenkov is seeking “at least a carve out” for Ukraine, which has a free-trade agreement with the EU that does not block separate trade protection.
- Ukraine’s steel industry estimates its exports to the EU could ultimately fall by about 50 to 60%.
- The European Commission says it took Ukraine’s difficult situation into account, but the source material does not confirm any specific exemption.
Yuriy Ryzhenkov, chief executive of the Ukrainian steelmaker Metinvest, has called on the European Union to drop import restrictions that he says are damaging Ukraine's steel industry. Speaking to the BBC, he said Ukraine had been “bundled together” with other countries in measures designed to curb cheap imports from places such as China. He described the recently imposed tariffs on steel imports to the EU as “unfair” and said they had been put in place “without any consideration for the situation Ukraine is in.” He said he wanted to see “at least a carve out” that would give Ukraine access to the EU market. Metinvest is one of Ukraine’s biggest steel companies.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said the bloc “took into account the difficult situation” of Ukraine when deciding its steel policy. The disagreement goes to the heart of how a close trading partner can be treated under rules designed to protect European producers from a surge of low-priced metal.
What the Metinvest Chief Is Asking For
Ryzhenkov’s central demand is an exemption for Ukrainian steel within the new EU framework. He argued that the bloc has treated Ukraine like any other exporter, even though the country is at war with Russia and its industry has been under strain for years. “Access to the European market is crucial for survival,” he said. “The restrictive measures that have been put in place by the authorities in the European Union, they don’t help.” He added: “I think it’s unfair that Ukraine has been treated in the same way as all of the other importers into the European Union.”
For an exporting steelmaker, access to a large and wealthy market such as the EU can be central to revenue and to keeping mills running at a steady pace. A producer that loses a major buyer may be forced to cut output, look for buyers in less profitable markets, or hold stock it cannot sell. That is why Ryzhenkov frames the issue as one of survival rather than only of trade policy. His request for a “carve out” suggests he is seeking a special treatment for Ukraine, rather than a general relaxation of the rules for all countries.
How the EU Steel Measure Works
The trading bloc has recently introduced restrictions on steel imports to protect its own steel manufacturers. According to the BBC report, the EU has capped the amount of steel that can enter the bloc tax-free at 18.3 million tonnes per year. That is a 47% reduction from 2024 levels. The policy includes some country-specific quotas, but its overall aim is to reduce the volume of steel coming into the EU, because member states’ producers are struggling to compete with cheap imports from China and Turkey.
This type of arrangement is usually described as a tariff-rate quota. Under such a system, imports within a set volume enter at a low or zero duty, while imports above that limit face higher charges. The purpose is to keep the bulk of trade flowing while limiting the amount of cheap product that can flood the market. For countries that already export large volumes to the EU, a cap set well below recent levels can have an outsized effect, because their shipments are competing for a smaller pool of tax-free entry.
The Free Trade Agreement Question
It may seem surprising that Ukraine faces these measures at all, given the close economic ties between Kyiv and Brussels. The EU and Ukraine have a free-trade agreement, which the BBC report notes is in place. That agreement is part of a wider deal under which Ukraine has gradually opened its market to European goods and aligned more closely with EU rules. Trade within the framework has grown over time.
However, a free-trade agreement mainly removes or reduces customs duties between the two partners. It does not stop either side from using other trade protection tools. The BBC report says the FTA does not prevent the EU from introducing separate trade protection measures. In practice, this means that a steel safeguard or quota aimed at a group of countries can still apply to a partner that has a free-trade deal with the bloc. Ryzhenkov’s complaint is that Ukraine has been grouped with the countries the measures were designed to target, rather than being treated as a separate case.
Why Ukraine’s Steel Sector Is Under Strain
Ukraine’s industry has been under heavy pressure since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Russian attacks have damaged energy infrastructure and industrial sites across the country, and steel production depends heavily on reliable power and transport. Ryzhenkov pointed to the war as the context that the EU should have taken into account. He did not, in the portion of his comments reported by the BBC, give detailed production figures for Metinvest.
The Ukrainian steel industry estimates that its steel exports to the EU could ultimately fall by about 50 to 60%. That is a striking projection, and it signals how much the sector depends on the European market. If the estimate proves accurate, the impact would reach beyond steel companies. Mills, mining operations, suppliers, transport firms and the communities that rely on them could all feel the effect, and the loss of export earnings could weigh on the broader economy at a time when Ukraine is dealing with wartime costs. The source material does not set out how the industry arrived at the figure, so it should be read as an industry projection rather than a settled outcome.
The European Commission’s Response
The European Commission said that the bloc took into account the difficult situation of Ukraine when deciding its steel policy. That statement signals that the EU does not see Ukraine as an ordinary importer. But it stops short of answering the central request. The source material does not say whether the Commission plans to grant a carve-out, a separate quota, or any other adjustment for Ukrainian steel. The gap between the EU’s stated consideration and Ryzhenkov’s view that Ukraine was “bundled together” is the core of the dispute.
EU trade policy in steel has been shaped for years by concern about overcapacity in global markets, particularly from China, and by pressure from European producers facing low-priced imports. Governments in several member states have pushed for firmer defences, while Ukraine has argued that its strategic and economic position calls for closer cooperation with the bloc. Both positions are reflected in the current debate, which pits European industrial protection against Ukraine’s need for export access during wartime.
What Could Happen Next
The BBC report does not say what the EU will do in response to Ryzhenkov’s request, so any outlook is analysis rather than confirmed plans. Several paths are possible. The EU could grant Ukraine a separate quota or a specific carve-out, which would be in line with the country-specific elements already built into the policy. It could also keep the measure in place while offering targeted support or negotiating trade adjustments through the existing free-trade framework. Alternatively, the framework could remain unchanged, leaving Ukrainian producers to adjust to a smaller export market.
Several indicators will show which direction the debate is taking. Official statements from the European Commission and the Ukrainian government, changes to the quota allocations for individual countries, and monthly trade figures for Ukrainian steel exports to the EU would all be useful signals. Companies such as Metinvest may also publicly report changes in orders, output or export destinations. If the industry’s projected decline begins to appear in the data, pressure on Brussels for an exemption is likely to grow. For now, the central question is whether the EU’s consideration of Ukraine’s situation will translate into a formal change to the rules or remain a statement of intent.
Questions and answers
Why is Metinvest calling on the EU to drop steel import restrictions?
Metinvest chief executive Yuriy Ryzhenkov says Ukraine has been “bundled together” with other countries in EU measures aimed at cheap imports from China, and that the measures were put in place without consideration of Ukraine’s situation. He says access to the European market is crucial for survival.
How much steel can enter the EU tax-free under the new limits?
The EU has capped the amount of steel that can enter tax-free at 18.3 million tonnes per year, a 47% reduction from 2024 levels. The policy also includes some country-specific quotas.
Does the EU free-trade agreement with Ukraine exempt it from steel measures?
No. The free-trade agreement between the EU and Ukraine does not stop the EU from introducing separate trade protection measures, which is why Ukraine has been included in the steel restrictions.
What could happen to Ukrainian steel exports to the EU?
The Ukrainian steel industry estimates that steel exports to the EU could ultimately fall by about 50 to 60%. The European Commission has said it took Ukraine’s difficult situation into account, but the source material does not confirm any carve-out.
Topics: Metinvest, Yuriy Ryzhenkov, European Union steel tariffs, Ukraine steel exports, EU-Ukraine free trade agreement, China steel imports, European Commission
Sources: BBC Business RSS
https://axynewsglobal.com/article/metinvest-chief-urges-eu-to-exempt-ukraine-from-steel-import-curbs