Titanium for the occupier: raw materials for missile production are still exported to Russia

The Russian military industry is dependent on imported titanium ores and concentrates.
An Austrian company with Ukrainian founders supplied Russian companies with millions of dollars worth of titanium ore before and after the full-scale invasion.
A company from the United Arab Emirates is currently the largest supplier of titanium-containing raw materials.

Kinzhal, Kalibr and Kh-101 missiles, which Russia uses almost daily to destroy Ukrainian towns and villages, are filled with components made of titanium. However, Russia is lacking raw materials for the production of this metal. But there don’t seem to be any problems with the production of missiles. After all, despite the full-scale armed aggression against Ukraine, Russia continues to receive the necessary raw materials. The Austrian company that continues supplying raw materials for Russia’s arms production is owned by Ukrainian citizens and has imported $5.5 million worth of raw materials to Russia during the full-scale war alone.

Titanium is a metal made from titanium ores and used in military aircraft, manufacture of missiles, shipbuilding and small arms production. It is as strong as steel but almost twice as light as it is. The use of this metal in the manufacture of missiles significantly increases the range and agility. Su-35 aircraft use about 50% of titanium products. All Russian tactical combat missiles contain titanium parts. In particular, the share of titanium parts in the Kh-31 is 30%, the Kalibr and Kinzhal contain 50-60% titanium, and the Kh-101 missiles contain about 70% of titanium components. Russia also plans to use titanium alloys to manufacture the maneuvering block of new Sarmat missiles, as well as in the Zircon anti-ship hypersonic missile.

However, despite the mass production of titanium from ore and the manufacturing of weapons from this titanium, the Russian military-industrial complex (MIC) is dependent on imported raw materials. Titanium ores and concentrates are imported to the aggressor country mainly from countries friendly to Russia. However, one of the main suppliers of valuable raw materials is the Austrian company Osttor.

Screenshot of Osttor website

Ties of Osttor to Ukraine

According to the official website, Osttor Beteiligungs Und Handelsgesellschaft MBH organizes freight transportation for companies and external customers, and trades energy and minerals. It is located in Vienna. And that’s basically all the information. But the register is much more interesting. The company was founded in 2013 by Austrians, but in 2016, a citizen of Ukraine, 37-year-old Yuriy Pertsev, became the company’s beneficiary, purchasing 100% of the shares for €35,000.

Osttor is also the founder of two other Austrian companies:

EKZ OP Vermietung GmbH (established on March 9, 2011). Shareholders of the company: Osttor (6%) and Maria Pertseva (94%).
QMartImmobilienprojekt GmbH (established on December 6, 2023). Osttor’s share in the authorized capital of this company is 100%. The managing director is Maria Pertseva.

In 2020, the Russian Federation imported 29 tons of rutile concentrate for a total of $39,967. The Russian recipient of the ore is ESAB LLC. The country of origin of the ore is Ukraine ( the producer is Demurinskyi GOK LLC);
In 2021, the Russian Federation imported 3,847 tons of rutile, zircon and ilmenite concentrates for a total of $2,564,267. The Russian recipients of the ore are ASR LLC, ESAB LLC, and Podolskogneupor JSC. The countries of origin of the ore are Ukraine (Demurinsky GOK LLC) and Vietnam (GPM Binh Thuan CO, LTD).
Between January 1, 2022 and February 23, 2022, 7271 tons of rutile, zircon and ilmenite concentrates were imported into Russia for a total of $4,418,450. The Russian recipients of the ore are ASR LLC, Podolskogneupor JSC and Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant JSC. The countries of origin of the ore are Ukraine (the producer is Demurinskyi GOK LLC) and Vietnam (the producers are GPM Binh Thuan Co., LTD and Hunan Minmetals Antimony And Titanium Limited).
During the period from February 24, 2022 to April 2022, Russia imported 8,504 tons of ilmenite concentrate for a total of $5,483,980. The Russian recipient of the ore is ASR LLC. The country of origin of the ore is Vietnam (the producers are Hunan Minmetals Antimony and Titanium Limited).

Russian oligarch Mikhail Shelkov, VSMPO-Avisma Corporation, Russian MIC

After the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Austrian company Osttor supplied the largest amount of titanium ore to the Russian company ASR LLC, which supplies titanium to the Russian military-industrial complex. ASR LLC is a wholesale agent for fuel, ores, metals and chemicals. It is part of the ownership structure of PJSC VSMPO-Avisma Corporation, which is part of the Rostec State Corporation. It is the only titanium company in the world that carries out a full production cycle: from processing raw materials to manufacturing final products.

PJSC VSMPO-Avisma Corporation is the largest supplier of titanium for the Russia’s MIC. Here are some of the companies that order titanium from PJSC VSMPO-Avisma Corporation:

JSC PA Strela manufactures components and assemblies for Yak-130 trainer aircraft, MiG-29, Su-30, Su-35 fighters, Su-34 bombers, latest generation T-50 fighters, MS-21 aircraft and UAVs;
Tupolev JSC is a leading Russian developer and manufacturer of strategic bombers and long-range aircraft. The bombers produced by the company were used by Russia in the war against Ukraine;
Amur Shipyard is a Russian state-owned enterprise that develops and builds most of Russia’s war ships;
The Russian Federal Nuclear Center – VNII of Experimental Physics is a Russian state-owned research and production enterprise that is part of the Rosatom State Corporation.

The ore is also supplied by the Austrian company to the Russian company ESAB, a supplier of materials, equipment, spare parts and welding tools. The founders of the company are Cyprus-based Exelvia Cyprus Limited and Dutch Exelvia International Holdings B.V. In addition, the Dutch company Exelvia International Holdings B.V. is also the founder of the Ukrainian company ESAB Ukraine LLC, a manufacturer and supplier of equipment and materials for welding and cutting.

ESAB (Elektriska Svetsnings-Aktiebolaget) is an American-Swedish company. The main parent company of ESAB is Colfax Corp. in Delaware, with its headquarters in Fulton, Maryland, USA. The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. ESAB is a global leader in the production of equipment and consumables for welding and cutting metals. The company has been operating in Russia for over 20 years, has created more than 6,000 jobs, has more than 150 distributors represented in all federal districts, and has two plants in St. Petersburg and Tyumen and an ESAB technology center in Krasnogorsk, Moscow Region. These plants produce Russian and ESAB branded welding materials, as well as electrodes, wires and fluxes as part of the import substitution program. After the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the company’s management has repeatedly stated that it will continue to operate in the aggressor state.

Hunan Minmetals Antimony and Titanium Limited from Vietnam was listed as the manufacturer of the products supplied by Pertsev’s Osttor Beteiligungs Und Handelsgesellschaft MBH.

According to Trap Aggressor, starting from June 2022 to April 2023, Dijkstra Logistics Fze (UAE) started exporting ilmenite concentrate produced by Hunan Minmetals Antimony and Titanium Limited to Russia. In total, this company imported ilmenite concentrate to the Russian Federation in the specified period for a total amount of $65,781,680. Prior to that, the company had not carried out any export operations to Russia.