In 2019, MMK’s shipments of rolled steel to the domestic market, including the CIS countries, exceeded 9.7 million tons – a record for the entire post-Soviet history of the company.
The plant set its previous record for shipments to the domestic market in 2014, with 9.588 million tons.
Over the past 25 years, MMK has consistently increased its presence in the Russian and CIS markets. In 1996-1999, up to two-thirds of total sales were exported to foreign countries, but by the mid-2000s the share of the domestic market (including the CIS) in shipments had exceeded 50%. In the 2010s, the company further increased its emphasis on the domestic market: in 2019, the domestic market accounted for 88.5% of sales, while exports amounted to 11.5%.
MMK is the leading supplier of metal products to the domestic market, thanks to both the presence of a wide range of the most popular types of rolled metal in Magnitogorsk, and its favorable geographical location near the largest metal-consuming centers of Russia and the CIS. Among the Russian regions, the most important for the company are its “home” regions – markets located nearby in which the company has a logistical advantage, namely the Urals, the Volga region and Siberia. These account for a total of 64% of sales on the domestic market. CIS countries account for approximately 15% of shipments.
The record figures for 2019 are the result of the company’s implementation of an import substitution policy and its prioritization of meeting demand on the domestic market, which has been the focus of MMK’s largest investment projects in recent decades. These include the creation of a modern section rolling factory and facilities for the production of coated steel, as well as the construction of the largest industrial complexes for the manufacturing of rolled plates and cold-rolled galvanized steel for the automotive industry. Today, MMK offers consumers a wide range of high-quality rolled metal products, the majority of which are products with high added value. (MMK/Ukrainian metal)
