Ukraine is in danger to lose its only cast iron producer

Ukraine's the only cast iron pipe producer DMPZ (Donetsk Metal Work) is examining the possibility of closure of its production. This decision had led to the reduction of orders, expansion of plastic pipes application to replace cast iron pipes in the future, and appearance of the Russian cast iron production in the greater volumes on Ukraine's market. The data for 2005 and two months of 2006 confirmed the complexity of the situation. Thus, the output of cast iron pipes decreased by about 36 percent in 2005, while during January of the present year, the pipe production fell by 18 tons, which is by 82 percent and 80 percent lower then levels of December and January 2005 respectively. During the February the production was absent and only 3 tons of the pipes were dispatched. As it was reported by DMPZ, to make the production profitable, the minimum output should be at least 200 tons per months. The final decision on whether or not to close the cast iron pipe production is to be taken in the course of this year, and will much depend on the market behavior.