Page 64 - UKRRptMar20

12.2% m/m to $36mn. In 11M19, Metinvest’s revenue dropped 8.5% y/y to $9,980mn, while its EBITDA plunged 48.0% to $1,252mn. Iron and steel product prices plunged m/m in October, losing 13% for pig iron, 16% for slabs, 22% for square billets, 7% for flat products and 4% for long products. Iron ore concentrate price gained 3% m/m, while pellet price dropped 7% m/m.
Ukraine’s largest steelmaker Metinvest reported on January 31 a 16% q/q drop in steel production ​at its subsidiaries to 1.673 mmt in 4Q19. Azovstal’s output lost 8% q/q to 938 kt in 4Q19, while Ilyich Steel’s output plunged 23% q/q in 4Q19 to 735 kt, according to the holding’s operational update. In 2019, Metinvest's crude steel output rose 3% y/y to 7.578 mmt due to a 10% y/y jump at Ilyich Steel that was partially offset by a 2% y/y drop at Azovstal. The holding’s hot iron output in 4Q19, 1.887 mmt, dropped 8% q/q. Its 2019 hot iron production lost 3% y/y to 7.928 mmt, according to the release. The 4Q19 output of semi-finished products at Metinvest rose 13% q/q to 912 kt as its merchant pig iron output jumped 43% q/q to 416 kt and its slab output lost 4% q/q to 496 kt.
Metinvest steel output jumps 30.5% m/m in January. ​Steel production at Ukraine’s largest producer Metinvest was 24.5 kt per day (or 761 kt per month) in January, a 30.5% m/m jump, according to Concorde Capital’s analysis of separate news reports by Interfax-Ukraine.​ ​ Ilyich Steel reported a 25.0% m/m increase in steel production to 11.3 kt per day, while Azovstal’s output jumped 35.6% m/m to 13.3 kt per day in January. The holding's hot iron output rose 6.4% m/m to 22.6 kt per day. Metinvest’s daily steel production in January, 24.5 kt per day, is the highest average monthly rate since at least the beginning of 2018.
● Interpipe
Pipe sales volume at Ukraine’s largest producer​ ​Interpipe​ was 30.2 kt in January, a 41.0% m/m drop​, according to the company’s January operational report released on February 18. Railway product sales rose 9.7% m/m to 21.3 kt, while external billet sales jumped 5x m/m to 3.6 kt. Total sales volume dropped 6.1% m/m to 823.0 kt.​ ​The m/m plunge in pipe sales volume in January was driven by OCTG pipes (-55% m/m to 8.5 kt), line pipes (-33% to 15.9 kt) and welded pipes (-35% to 4.5 kt).​ ​The m/m increase in railway product sales was driven mostly by sales of wheelsets, which jumped 2.3x m/m to 2.0 kt, and wheels (a 5.9% gain to 18.7 kt). CIS countries comprised 48% of railway product sales in January, followed by Europe (30%) and Ukraine (12%).​ ​Regarding production volumes, which might be indicative of sales volumes in future months, Interpipe’s production of pipes was flat m/m at 32.1 kt in January, while railway product production dropped 10.7% m/m to 17.5 kt.
● Ferrexport
Ukraine’s largest iron ore pellet exporter ​Ferrexpo​ is going to boost its pellet production volume 9.3% year-on-year in 2020 to 11.5mn tonnes​, according to the Interfax news agency, which cited Ferrexpo’s corporate Facebook page. In particular, Ferrexpo plans to increase its production of pellets with 65% iron content by 9.5% y/y to 11.08mn tonnes and production of pellets with 62% iron content by 4.2% y/y to 0.42mn tonnes. Dmytro Khoroshun at Kyiv-based brokerage Concorde Capital tentatively expects Ferrexpo’s 2020 production volume to be 10.5-11.4mn tonnes (28.5-31.5
64​ UKRAINE Country Report​ March 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com