Kryvyi Rih goes into “survival mode”: the city cuts its budget due to the shutdown of industry

Kryvyi Rih is preparing to sequester the city budget and suspend some development projects. The reason was a sharp drop in tax revenues against the background of the shutdown of large industrial enterprises of the city.

The head of the Kryvyi Rih Defense Council, Oleksandr Vilkul, announced the situation.

According to him, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, Ingulets and Pivdennyi mining and processing plants, as well as the Kryvyi Rih Iron Ore Plant are currently not operating.

Other large enterprises of the city, according to Vilkul, are loaded at most by a quarter of the pre-war level.

Why are enterprises shutting down

Among the reasons for the difficult situation, Vilkul named Russian attacks and problems with exporting products through ports.

Along with large industrial enterprises, numerous contracting companies are also idle. As a result, the city receives less tax revenues, which directly affects the capabilities of the local budget.

Because of this, Kryvyi Rih plans to stop the implementation of a number of projects in 2026.

“This is not about development. This is about survival. We need to survive now,” Vilkul said.

What will happen to hospitals, schools and utilities

Despite the reduction in spending, the city government promises to maintain funding for critical areas.

The following will remain a priority:

schools and kindergartens;
hospitals;
water supply;
heating;
other critical infrastructure.

At the same time, Vilkul called the forecast for the Kryvyi Rih budget for 2027 “very bad.”

ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih stops work after attacks

Earlier, it became known about the shutdown of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, one of the largest metallurgical enterprises in Ukraine. According to the source, this was preceded by four missile strikes within five weeks.

The attack on August 17 damaged major energy and blast furnace facilities. Two people were killed, 13 others were injured, and some production processes had to be halted.

Amid industry problems and declining revenues, the city’s main task is to maintain basic services and critical infrastructure.