The financial partner of the project for the modification of the monument will be Metinvest Group of Rinat Akhmetov. Zaporizhstal plant will produce steel for the Ukrainian trident coat of arms (tryzub) free of charge, which will replace the USSR coat of arms on Kyiv’s Motherland Monument.
The project has been developed by the “Ukrainian Institute of Steel Structures named after V. M. Shymanovskyi”, LLC. The Ukrainian trident on the shield is a three-dimensional structure identical to the old coat of arms. The trident will be made of two types of steel: Metinvest’s stainless steel of 1.7 mm in thickness and steel of a foreign manufacturer of 1.5 mm in thickness. The Motherland Monument itself is made of steel from Zaporizhstal, Azovstal and Ilyich Iron and Steel Works, which are part of Metinvest Group.
Yuriy Ryzhenkov, CEO of Metinvest Group:
“Metinvest is one of the partners of a large-scale project for decommunisation of the Motherland Monument. We believe that one of the most important symbols of the invincibility of the Ukrainian people should be decorated with a trident made of high-quality Ukrainian steel. It is a symbol of Ukrainian identity that we are proud of. Specifically for this project, we have renewed the steel grade from which the entire monument was made in 1981. And it was made of Zaporizhstal steel. We continue to support Ukrainians in the most difficult times for everyone, helping the army and civilians and being the pillar of the country’s economy».
To create the trident, Metinvest engaged specialists from several of its Ukrainian enterprises. The rolled steel for the modified symbol was produced by employees of Metinvest’s joint venture, Zaporizhstal, which renewed the steel grade from which the monument was made.
Roman Slobodianiuk, General Director of Zaporizhstal of Metinvest Group:
“We have been working hard for several months to renew a very special steel grade. Especially for the historical monument, which personifies the symbol of invincibility of our people, Zaporizhstal rolled stainless steel was renewed. It was the steel grade 12X18H10T that was used to create the monument in 1981. Our steel will form the basis of the Ukrainian trident on the shield, which invariably protects the values of freedom and independence in the civilized world. It was born during the war on the way to our victory. We are proud to be involved in the national project for the modification of one of the main symbols of the Ukrainian capital.”
The project sculptor is Ukrainian artist Oleksii Pergamenshchyk. The installation of the composition will begin in July and will last until 24 August this year.
The project of the monument modification is implemented by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine as part of the ongoing process of decommunisation and derussification in the country. Aside from Metinvest, the project’s partners and financial donors are Monobank, KAN Development, Nova Poshta, PrivatBank, ATB, and Oschadbank. Funds for reconstruction are accumulated by the Agency for Cultural Resilience (ACURE) that cooperates with the Heritage Rescue Headquarters to provide assistance to cultural institutions and facilities during the russian federation’s military aggression against Ukraine.
As a reminder, a survey on the fate of the USSR coat of arms on the shield of the Motherland Monument was conducted in the Diia application. Nearly 800,000 Ukrainians voted, and 85% wanted the Soviet coat of arms replaced with the trident.
Metinvest Group is one of the largest and most experienced steelmaking company in Ukraine and a globally renowned manufacturer of products for steel construction. Among the well-known structures made of the Company’s steel are the Darnytsia Bridge in Kyiv, the new safe confinement over the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the NSC Olimpiyskiy in Kyiv, The Shard skyscraper in London, the St. George Bridge in Genoa, and hundreds of other completed projects in Ukraine and around the world.