Kryvyi Rih mine opens new high-grade iron ore block
Oleksandr Yaroslavskyi, DCH group beneficiary (Photo: Oleksandr Yaroslavskyi / Facebook)
Sukha Balka mine in Kryvyi Rih, a unit of Oleksandr Yaroslavsky's DCH Group, commissioned a new iron ore extraction block at its Yuvileina mine in early July, the enterprise announced in an official press update.
The newly opened block holds reserves estimated at 141 thousand tons of iron ore with an average iron content exceeding 59%. Mine operations plan to fully extract the raw material reserves over the next four months.
Vasyl Lubynets, Deputy Chief Engineer for Production at the Yuvileina mine, noted that the block features a specialized drift-platform design. This technological setup optimizes the extraction workflow by allowing direct scraper hauling of raw material batches right within the underground working area.
Since the beginning of 2026, engineering teams at the Yuvileina mine have prepared seven new mining blocks for active extraction, unlocking a collective reserve total of 561 thousand tons of raw iron ore.
Financial dynamics and corporate history
The operational expansion comes amid a complex financial landscape for the mining operator:
Quarterly Performance: In the first quarter of 2026 (January–March), Sukha Balka reduced its net losses by 28.4% year-over-year to $2.05 million (91.5 million UAH), while overall net revenue contracted by 9.1% to $13.82 million (616.3 million UAH).
Annual Baseline: Across the full 2025 financial year, the mine reported a total loss of $10.16 million (420.2 million UAH) on revenues of $65.3 million (2.7 billion UAH).
Production Capacity: Commercial iron ore output in 2025 fell by 3% compared to 2024, down to 885.9 thousand tons, with the facility operating at approximately 35% of its total installed capacity.
Sukha Balka ranks among Ukraine's leading mining enterprises specializing in underground iron ore extraction. The complex comprises two primary active sites: the Yuvileina mine and the Frunze mine.
DCH Group originally acquired Sukha Balka in May 2017 from the Evraz Group, whose largest shareholder is Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. Evraz bought the enterprise in 2007 from the informal Privat Group led by Ihor Kolomoisky and Hennadiy Boholyubov.
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