Mauro Longobardo

Mauro Longobardo was born in the Lombardian town of Gallarate.^[7]He graduated of the Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy, majoring in Materials Engineering^[8] He obtained a degree from MIT Sloan School of Management in Boston. Longobardo received further executive education at IAE, the Management and Business School of the Austral University (Argentina).^[9]

From 2002 to 2006, Mauro Longobardo worked for Tenaris Dalmine (Italy) in quality and product development.^[10] He then moved to Argentina, overseeing different manufacturing sites at the Tenaris Siderca plant, located near Buenos Aires.^[11]

In 2010, he moved to Dubai to become worldwide coordination director for Oil Country Tubular Goods (OCTG). He also worked as commercial director and regional manager in Iraq, Qatar, Oman, Yemen, Pakistan, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan.^[9] From 2013 to 2015, Longobardo joined PJSC Chelpipe as Deputy CEO. After 2015, he joined Interpipe Group, becoming the chief operating officer in Ukraine.^[9]

Longobardo joined the ArcelorMittal Group in February 2018 as CEO of ArcelorMittal Tubular Products Jubail, a joint venture between ArcelorMittal and Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF). He held this position up to July 31, 2021 and was then appointed Member of the Board and Vice-Chairman.^[12][13][14]

Since November 2020, Longobardo has served as a member of the Supervisory Board of the European Business Association in Ukraine.^[15] In 2021, he became Vice President of the association.^[16] Нe is expected to hold this position until 2027.^[17] In 2025, Longobardo was put on the 7th place of Forbes Ukraine’s ranking of Best 25 CEOs of Ukraine.^[18]

For two consecutive years, Longobardo was included by the independent business media outlet Delo.ua in its list of the 50 most experienced CEOs in Ukraine.^[19]

Since February 18, 2020, to the current moment he has been the CEO of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih plant, which is part of ArcelorMittal international corporation.^[20][21][22] In 2021, the last year before Russia's invasion in February 2022, the steelmaker's peak output totalled 4.9 million tons.^[23]

ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih was shut down for security reasons in February 2022, at the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but resumed production at 20-25 % in fall 2022.^[24]

Between 2022 and 2026, the plant operated under severe conditions that included rising electricity costs, disruptions to power supply caused by Russian missile and drone attacks, a reduction in personnel exceeding 6,000 due to mobilization and departures,^[25] increased tariffs of the state railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia, and growing imports of steel products from Turkey and China.^[26]

However, in 2025, the company increased its tax and fee payments to UAH 8.5 billion, representing a 28% increase compared to 2024).^[27] The company’s humanitarian and social assistance amounted to UAH 767 million from the start of the full-scale invasion.^[28]

Prior to 2026, the plant employed more than 18,000 people.^[29] Only in 2026, due to CBAM-related export restrictions and high electricity prices, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih initiated layoffs to maintain operations.

In 2026, Mauro Longobardo has made numerous public statements regarding the potential negative consequences of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) for Ukraine in the absence of exemptions. In 2025, the plant exported approximately 920,000 tonnes of products to the European Union, representing about one-third of its capacity. In 2026, the company was unable to export the planned 1.25 million tonnes of steel products.^[30]

In addition, high energy costs and carbon-related policies contributed to decisions to cease operations at certain facilities, including the blooming mill^[31] and the Casting and Mechanical Plant (LMZ).^[32] Mauro Longobardo has also expressed concerns regarding the competitiveness of Ukrainian industry, the level of state support, and the risks of deindustrialization and loss of industrial and economic capacity.^[33]