Ukrainian mining and steel producing group Metinvest has stated that its Avdiivka Coke subsidiary has been hit by artillery as a result of armed hostilities. Several shells hit the company's core production shops. The storage facility for coal tar, which is used for the production of coal tar pitch, was partially destroyed and the electricity transmission lines that feed the plant were damaged.
Thanks to effective and professional action by shift personnel of the plant and employees from the branch of the Ministry for Emergency Situations in Avdiivka, fires were localized and casualties were prevented. The fires have been extinguished and repair work at the damaged sites is underway. It is expected that restoration work will take at least two days. The main task now is to restore electricity supply to the plant in full.
During this time, coke production at Avdiivka Coke will be halved. However, this situation will not have a significant impact on the operation of Metinvest Group's metallurgical enterprises that consume products from Avdiivka Coke, including Yenakiieve Iron & Steel Works and Ilyich Iron & Steel Works of Mariupol. The management of Metinvest Group's Metallurgical Division has developed a scheme for substituting coke supplies from Avdiivka with products from the group's other coking facilities, such as the Dniprodzerzhinsk and Yenakiieve coke plants and Azovstal's coking batteries.