ArcelorMittal closes Ukraine's largest steel plant after Russian attacks
ArcelorMittal has said it is unable to safely and sustainably restart operations at the ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih steel plant following a series of recent missile strikes.
The company said this on its website, Ukrinform reports.
The company noted that Over the past five weeks, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih has been targeted by four missile strikes, resulting in fatalities, injuries and extensive damage to production facilities. The most recent attack occurred on September 21.
In total, the four attacks claimed five lives and injured 17 employees, one of whom remains in a critical condition.
"ArcelorMittal has with deep regret advised the Government of Ukraine that it is unable to restart operations at its Ukrainian subsidiary in a safe and sustainable manner," the company said in a statement.
ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih CEO Mauro Longobardo noted that since the start of the full-scale war, the company's employees in Ukraine had worked tirelessly to keep the mines and steel plant operating.
"We are discussing the future of the plant with the Government of Ukraine and will focus on preserving the infrastructure, so when peace finally returns, options for restarting production remain available," he added.
ArcelorMittal also noted that the workforce of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih had demonstrated extraordinary resilience throughout the full-scale war.
The company provided financial support to ensure the continued operation of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, allocating more than $700 million to the enterprise.
At the same time, ArcelorMittal expects to record a non-cash impairment charge of approximately $1 billion, principally reflecting the impairment of property, plant and equipment at ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih.
In May, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih shut down a blast furnace, two sintering machines and an ore beneficiation plant due to disruptions to logistics, citing inadequate services provided by Ukrzaliznytsia as the reason. Ukrzaliznytsia called the statement blackmail.
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