The Mineral Industry of Ukraine in 2008
2008 Minerals Yearbook UKRAINE U.S. Department of the Interior December 2010 U.S. Geological Survey THE MINERAL INDUS T RY OF UKRAINE By Mark Brininstool Ukraine was a major world producer of bromine, gallium, other European consumers (Johnson and Kim, 2008; NJSC graphite, iron ore, magnesium metal, manganese ore, nitrogen, Naftogaz of Ukraine, 2008, 2009b; OAO Gazprom and NJSC peat, pig iron, silicon, steel, titanium, titanium concentrates Naftogaz of Ukraine, 2008). (ilmenite and rutile), and zirconium. The country has large coal reserves but is dependent on imports to satisfy most Commodity Review of its petroleum and natural gas demand. Ukraine was also an important transit country for petroleum and natural gas Metals from Russia and Central Asia to Europe (Apodaca, 2009a-c; Corathers, 2009a, b; Fenton, 2009; Gambogi, 2009a-c; Jaskula, Aluminum.—Throughout 2008, the Zaporozhye aluminum 2009; Jorgenson, 2009; Kramer, 2009; Olson, 2009). smelter (ZALK), which was Ukraine’s only producer of primary aluminum, requested a reduction in its electricity tariffs. In Production 2007, the rate that the company had to pay for electricity increased by 24.3%, and in the first 10 months of 2008, it had In 2008, production of nickel mine output decreased by grown by another 45.7%. The company claimed that electricity 33%; ferroalloys, by 24%; rolled and crude steel, by 16% and costs made up 48% of its production costs. As the price of 13%, respectively; pig iron, by 13%; and iron ore, by about electricity increased, the sale price of aluminum decreased, 7%. Gypsum production increased by 56%, and feldspar, by resulting in financial losses for ZALK of about $5.6 million 9%.
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