Ukraine Increases Scrap Metal Exports: New Trends in Trade

According to data from the State Customs Service, the export of Ukrainian scrap metal continues to grow, despite the existing shortage of raw materials in the domestic market. Previously, Turkey was the main export destination, but since 2023, Polish companies have taken the lead.

This is reported by AgroReview

In 2021, Polish counterparts purchased 160,600 tons of Ukrainian scrap metal, accounting for 88% of total exports. In 2022, shipments to Poland increased to 248,600 tons, which made up 85% of total exports. In January-February 2025, Polish buyers received 38,850 tons of Ukrainian raw materials, which already constitutes 94.8% of all scrap metal exports.

Growth of Scrap Metal Exports to Poland

Exports of scrap metal to Europe are showing rapid growth. It is important to note that the European Union, unlike Turkey, is also a large exporter of scrap metal, indicating that European metallurgists do not face the supply issues that are relevant for their Ukrainian counterparts. In 2022, European scrap dealers exported about 16.72 million tons of scrap metal, of which Poland accounted for approximately 1.3 million tons.

Challenges for Ukrainian Metallurgical Enterprises

At the same time, the few Ukrainian metallurgical enterprises that are still operational face the threat of production cuts due to a lack of scrap metal, which in turn reduces their revenue. In early February, representatives of the metallurgical and casting industries warned of a potential significant shortage of scrap metal in the domestic market in 2025.