The State and Prospects of Artificial Intelligence Implementation at Ukrainian Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises
Bozhyk M. S.

Bozhyk, Maryna S. (2026) “The State and Prospects of Artificial Intelligence Implementation at Ukrainian Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises.” The Problems of Economy 2:168–180.
https://doi.org/10.32983/2222-0712-2026-2-168-180

Section: Economics and national economy management

UDC 338.45:330.341.1

Abstract:
The article examines the current state and prospects of implementing artificial intelligence at enterprises of Ukraine’s mining and metallurgical complex. The relevance of the topic is determined by the need to modernize industry under conditions of war, post-war recovery, European integration, and the growing role of digital technologies in increasing productivity and enterprise competitiveness. The purpose of the study is to assess the organizational and economic readiness of mining and metallurgical enterprises for AI implementation, taking into account personnel, information, managerial, and infrastructural factors. The empirical basis of the study consists of the results of a questionnaire survey of 102 representatives of management and specialists from PrJSC “Dnipro Metallurgical Plant” and PrJSC “Sukha Balka”. The study applies descriptive statistics, comparative analysis of the two enterprises, structural and logical grouping, and content analysis of open-ended responses. It is established that the practical use of AI at the studied enterprises remains fragmented and is mainly associated with auxiliary or specific operational tasks. The main barriers identified include insufficient staff qualifications, the complexity of integrating AI with existing equipment, the high cost of investment, problems with data quality and integration, and a cautious level of trust in decisions generated on the basis of AI. It is shown that, under the conditions of the mining and metallurgical complex, AI at the current stage has predominantly not a disruptive but a sustaining character, as it is used primarily to optimize existing processes, reduce costs, improve occupational safety, control product quality, and support predictive maintenance of equipment. The article substantiates the expediency of gradual AI implementation through pilot projects, the development of employees’ digital competencies, the improvement of data management systems, and the formation of state and corporate mechanisms to support the digital modernization of industrial enterprises.

Keywords: artificial intelligence (AI); mining and metallurgical complex; industrial enterprise; questionnaire survey; disruptive technology; sustaining technology; general economic theory of strategizing.

Tabl.: 16. Bibl.: 13.

Bozhyk Maryna S. – Postgraduate Student, Department of financial and economic problems of production potential use, Institute of Industrial Economics of NAS of Ukraine (2 Mariia Kapnist Str., Kyiv, 03057, Ukraine)
Email: bozhyk@nas.gov.ua

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