The VIII International Industry Forum "ZILANT-2026" is taking place these days in Yekaterinburg. It is one of the year's main events for metallurgists and scrap processors. Major holdings are taking part: TransLom, UralVtorMet, MMK, OMK, BMZ, SGMK, AEMZ, YugMet, Rusal, Akron, Ferratek, and others – more than 300 companies in total.
The general partner of the forum is Noviy Vtormet.
This year's forum program is packed. Participants have already visited leading industry enterprises in Yekaterinburg. But the main event is the discussion of key issues.
The first strategic session was opened by Denis Kraev, general partner of the ZILANT-2026 International Forum and CEO of JSC SGMK.
He welcomed forum participants and spoke about SGMK's key achievements, including the diversification of its business. "SGMK today is not just scrap metal; the company is actively developing its metallurgical division, ranks among the largest ferroalloy producers, and is involved in timber processing," he emphasized. He then focused in greater detail on the philosophy the company actively promotes.
"Our team invests deep meaning in the Noviy Vtormet brand philosophy in terms of transforming the entire industry. Today we will explain in detail exactly what has changed thanks to our new approach, how the industry is developing, and how we are jointly tackling today's challenges," noted Denis Kraev, after which he officially declared the forum open.
The forum program continued in the format of thematic sessions. Participants discussed how businesses are adapting to current economic realities
During the session, Denis Kraev presented analytics and offered an assessment of the current year compared with 2025.
"Common sense prevailed. However, far from everyone was able to take advantage of the market conditions that opened up to us. If you look at the numbers, scrap collection in the first 9 months of 2026, according to our data, was 9% higher than in the same period of 2025. But at the same time, it is still 24% lower than in 2024. This indicates that the market has not yet fully recovered, and there is room for growth. Yes, the current year is shaping up better than the previous one, but now our main task is to preserve the positive trends we have achieved and consolidate that success," he said.
It is symbolic that the forum bears the name of ZILANT – a mythical winged serpent that combines indestructible earthly strength with the ability to soar to birdlike heights. Like its legendary patron, Russia's scrap processing industry today demonstrates remarkable flexibility: standing firmly on its metallurgical foundation, it spreads its wings for further growth. Adapting to tough market challenges, overcoming the pressure of quotas, and transforming its business philosophy alongside leaders like Noviy Vtormet, the industry is proving that it can not only survive but confidently climb to new heights.