NV and The Economist Special Project publication (“The World Ahead 2024”, issue no. 8/2024) have published a column by Yuriy Ryzhenkov, CEO of Metinvest Group, on the results of 2024 and expectations for this year.
Metinvest spans two continents, with production facilities in five countries and a presence worldwide. Thousands of buildings, bridges, ships and skyscrapers are made with the finest Ukrainian steel. It symbolises our strength, resilience and inspiration, while serving as the foundation for developing infrastructure, modern technologies and national security.
The year 2024 was not only significant for the Group, but marked a true period of transformation – and that is no exaggeration. Despite the war, we have not only endured but also grown. We have upheld our status as Ukraine’s largest exporter, the nation’s pillar and the largest donor to the country’s armed forces. We take pride in Metinvest being the steel heart of Ukraine’s economy.
We are united by a shared goal: to bring victory closer by every means possible. Each employee contributes to this mission: managers and workers who maintain production, and those mobilised into the armed forces. As do women, some as young as 19, who are ready to work in the mines. Every day in production brings us one step closer to our shared goal.
The year 2025 must be one of hope: not only for the end of the war but also for the recovery of the devastated economy. This requires security guarantees, which will be the basis for attracting international investment into critical sectors such as lithium and uranium mining, as well as industrial manufacturing. This will provide the country with new jobs and technological opportunities.
No matter what, we will continue our struggle, as we have for the past 10 years, to be not only the nation’s pillar, but also the foundation for its future recovery. Metinvest aspires to be an example of a people-centred business, where success is measured not only in financial terms, but also in the wellbeing of our employees and communities. We now have over 1,000 veterans in our workforce, and we are ready to train anyone willing to join us in building an economically stable and peaceful Ukraine.
My dream has remained unchanged for several years: to return to my native Donetsk and celebrate Ukraine’s victory there. This victory will be not only on the battlefield, but also in the economic and social reconstruction of our country. My Donetsk is not just history: it is a future that we will rebuild together.
