According to Kalenkov, scrap metal exports from Ukraine increased from 50 thousand tons in 2022 to 450 thousand tons in 2025. The production of scrap metal in the country at that time was falling, and this resulted in a deficit in the domestic market of approximately 200 thousand tons.
“In 2025, metallurgical enterprises produced less steel than they could. Ukraine lost approximately $700 million in foreign exchange earnings and billions of hryvnia in tax revenue,” he noted.
Commenting on Poland's reaction, he noted that the volumes of Ukrainian scrap metal are not critical for the Polish market. According to him, the scrap metal market in Poland is approximately 7 million tons per year. In 2024, 350 thousand tons were delivered from Ukraine to Poland, which is less than 5% of the Polish market. At the same time, Poland itself exported approximately 3 million tons of scrap metal.
“If Poland itself exports seven times more scrap metal than Ukraine supplies to Poland, it is obvious that it does not have a special need for scrap metal,” Kalenkov emphasized.
He stated that a significant part of Ukrainian scrap metal actually transited through Poland to third countries, in particular Turkey, in order to avoid paying an export duty in Ukraine in the amount of €180 per ton.
The President of Ukrmetallurgprom said that consultations with the European Commission and relevant EU structures have continued since 2023, and at the Brussels level, Ukraine’s position was understood.
“We do not pose a threat to Poland. If restrictions on Ukrainian products lead to a shutdown of our enterprises, we will simply buy less Polish goods, including coke and coking coal,” he noted.
Kalenkov emphasized that the temporary restriction on the export of scrap metal is in line with European practice. The EU plans to limit exports of scrap metal to non-OECD countries from 2027 as part of its Steel Action Plan.
Context
The Ukrainian government made a temporary decision limit the export of scrap metal until the end of 2026. Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Sviridenko said that scrap metal is a critical raw material for the Ukrainian metallurgical and foundry industry.
