United Mining and Chemical Company (UMCC Titanium) plans to attract around $70 million in investment from its owner, international group NEQSOL Holding, over the next two years. At the same time, implementation of the investment program will depend on improvements in the regulatory environment, including the removal of export restrictions on rutile and zircon concentrates.
Since the privatization of UMCC, operating and capital investments in the company have already exceeded UAH 2 billion. A two-year plan approved by the supervisory board provides for an additional investment of around $70 million from NEQSOL Holding B.V. The funds are expected to help the company stabilize production, modernize its facilities and move toward break-even operations by 2028.
According to Rishad Aliyev, Head of Investor Relations at NEQSOL Holding B.V. and First Deputy CEO of UMCC, following completion of the privatization process and stabilization of operations in 2025, the company significantly increased production this year. In the first half of 2026, UMCC produced more than 84% of its total 2025 output.
The company has also regained customers in the United States, Mexico and European Union countries, although further sales growth is being constrained by export requirements. According to Aliyev, products subject to restrictions account for around 50% of UMCC’s gross product value, meaning the company is currently unable to sell them in full on international markets.
The restrictions specifically concern exports of rutile and zircon concentrates and were introduced after the company’s privatization. According to Aliyev, since completion of the transaction, UMCC has lost around $35 million in foreign currency revenue due to its inability to fully export these products.
“These are funds the company could have earned and invested both in production modernization and in increasing output,” Aliyev said.
NEQSOL also believes that lifting the restrictions could influence the group’s future investment plans in Ukraine’s mining and metals sector. In particular, NEQSOL Holding is considering possible participation in the auction for the Demurinsky Mining and Processing Plant in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Ukraine’s State Property Fund has scheduled the auction for October 20, although the investor has not yet made a final decision on participation.
Dmytro Natalukha, Head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine, said that the introduction of new forms of control over UMCC products after privatization has negatively affected the company’s investment attractiveness, as the investor acquired the asset under different conditions. The Fund is prepared to work with businesses and relevant government authorities to seek a balanced solution to the issue.
Logistics remains another major challenge for UMCC. The company is facing difficulties exporting products from the Vilnohirsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant (VGMK) to the United States. Due to Russian attacks and disruptions affecting the Odesa logistics route, the company is considering alternative corridors, including rail transportation through Romania or Poland, followed by shipment by sea.
According to Valerii Zakharenko, UMCC’s Chief Operating Officer, such logistics schemes cost the company millions of dollars annually. The sharp increase in transportation costs directly affects the profitability of export shipments.
“If the cost of transporting one tonne of product, for example, doubles, our margin falls to zero,” Zakharenko explained.
In addition to export restrictions and high logistics costs, UMCC’s operations are affected by labour shortages, the proximity of production sites to the frontline and high electricity prices.
According to Dimitri Kalandadze, CEO of UMCC, the company’s first priority is to stabilize production and bring its facilities to planned capacity. The next stage will involve production modernization, after which UMCC plans to gradually move away from raw material exports and develop deeper processing of titanium feedstock in Ukraine.
The company also intends to expand its own raw material base. In the near future, UMCC plans to begin mining at the Yurska “Phase II” site in the Zhytomyr region. Three open pits are currently operating at the “Phase I” site. The company also considers the Bukynska site another promising mining area.
At the same time, UMCC’s financial performance remains challenging. In January–June 2026, the company’s net loss increased 2.5 times year-on-year to UAH 745.4 million, while revenue rose 34.8% to UAH 1.12 billion.
For the full year 2025, UMCC recorded a net loss of UAH 2.12 billion, compared with a net profit of UAH 17.1 million a year earlier. Annual revenue declined by 47% to UAH 1.51 billion.
NEQSOL attributes a significant portion of the negative financial result in 2025 to the company’s transition to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the write-off of liabilities previously recorded on its balance sheet.
UMCC was privatized in October 2024, when Cemin Ukraine LLC, part of NEQSOL Holding, acquired the company at a privatization auction for nearly UAH 4 billion. Following completion of the required regulatory procedures, UMCC officially transferred to the new investor in June 2025 and began operating as part of the international NEQSOL Holding group, which has businesses across multiple countries and industries.
UMCC combines two production assets: the Vilnohirsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant in the Dnipropetrovsk region and the Irshansk Mining and Processing Plant in the Zhytomyr region. The company’s core activities include open-pit mining of titanium ores and the production of titanium ore concentrates, including zircon, ilmenite, rutile, kyanite-sillimanite, staurolite and quartz sand concentrates.
