[4] The alloys are produced from manganese ore and coke in an electric arc furnace.

[3] In 1958 the USSR council of ministers gave a decree for the construction of a manganese ferroalloy plant at Nikopol in Ukraine.

In the troubled times of the 1990s brought about by the collapse of the Soviet Union and Ukrainian independence the factory had difficulty obtaining raw materials, and even the electricity to power the furnaces was in short supply.

[6] In 2003 as part of a governmental privatisation plan a 50% stake in the plant was sold to Interpipe Group for 80million dollars considered to be a fraction of its true worth.

The company was also fought over by the two major stake holders Privat Group and Interpipe.