No major restrictions imposed on 2016 scrap metal exports

MOSCOW (Scrap Monster): The Ukraine’s Economic Development and Trade Ministry has approved scrap metal balances for 2016. The scrap export volume has not been reduced much despite requests by metal producers’ trade group.

According to the Ministry, it plans to keep the scrap metal exports in 2016 at 1.1 million tons, slightly lower when compared with the previous year. The scrap metal export limit was set at 1.21 million tons in 2015. Meantime, steel smelting operations is set at 24.5 million tonnes for the current year, higher by 6.5% when compared with 2015. It must be noted that steel smelting was set at 23 million tonnes in 2015.

Meantime, the total scrap metal production by the country in 2016 is planned to total 4.6 million tonnes. Nearly 76% of the total scrap metal production will feed domestic markets. The supply of scrap metal to domestic market is estimated at 3.5 million tonnes. The supply to domestic market had totaled 3.07 million tonnes in 2015, accounting for 71.7% share of total scrap metal production during the year. Incidentally, 4.28 million tonnes of scrap metal was produced in 2015.

The scrap metal balance was approved by order No. 337 dated March 1^st, 2016. Also, the Ministry has notified that the concerned department has already begun accepting documents to register foreign economic contracts to export scrap metal out of the country.

Meantime, representatives of metal companies and trade groups stated that the metal balances are not in line with the interest of the sector. The domestic market currently faces huge shortage of scrap metal, which has led to stoppage of operations by a few companies, they noted. More restrictions on scrap metal exports would have addressed the shortage of scrap metal in local market, they added.