Oleksandr Yaroslavsky has announced plans to create DCH Steel as part of efforts to bolster the efficiency of the mining and metallurgical interests within his DCH Group. The company will manage two of his recent acquisitions, the Dnipropetrovsk Metallurgical Plant (DMZ) and Suhka Balka mine in Kryviy Rih.
This reorganization of Yaroslavsky’s business empire aims to improve asset management while paving the way for large-scale investment projects. According to DCH Group officials, plans are in place to invest up to USD 200 million over the coming five years. Improvements include the restoration of a coke chemical production facility at DMZ, while Sukha Balka will see the addition of a processing plant along with steps to upgrade equipment and access ore reserves at deeper levels. Ore extraction, enrichment and smelting will be coordinated into a production chain as part of a gradual vertical integration drive, while management will be centralized at the level of the newly created DCH Steel. Key objectives include ending dependency on external suppliers while improving competitiveness, sustainability and financial performance.
The DCH Steel management team will be led by Vitaly Bash, who comes with more than ten years of experience working for DCH Group. Bash was born in Volnohorsk in Dnipropetrovsk region and graduated from Dnipro National University before completing an MBA at Edinburgh Business School in the UK. He previously managed the Sukha Balka mine.
DCH Group is one of Ukraine’s largest business groups with a 20-year history and a diversified portfolio covering such sectors as finance, industry, construction, hospitality, and transport infrastructure. Speaking to the media in Kharkiv on 28 March, DCH Group’s sole proprietor Oleksandr Yaroslavsky commented on his investment plans, “We have two major focuses. One is a major reconstruction of DMZ, which we acquired in a rundown condition. This includes upgrades of existing facilities and the construction of entirely new plant facilities. The investment timeline is five years and will require USD 200 million. We also plan to spend USD one billion over the coming decade on the development of Kharkiv Tractor Plant.”
Yaroslavsky has significantly expanded his investment portfolio in recent years with the acquisition of a series of industrial assets. In 2016 he bought the iconic Kharkiv Tractor Plant. This was followed in 2017 by the acquisition of Sukha Balka mine, and in 2018 with the purchase of DMZ, which is one of the oldest metallurgical enterprises in Ukraine.