Electronics manufacturer moved production from Russia to Ukraine

Following the outbreak of the war, Finnish company RTL-Inductives was forced to shut down its factory in Russia at short notice. Replacement production was quickly set up in Ukraine with the support of Finnpartnership.

RTL-Inductives Oy had a factory manufacturing electronic components in Vyborg, but even before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the company had recognised the risks of operating in Russia.

Wladimir Ilivitzky, Chairman of the Board at RTL-Inductives, explains that the company had already been exploring alternative production sites. In February 2022, these plans became a matter of urgency.

Through the Family Business Network Finland, a connection was established with Karpaty, a company operating in western Ukraine, and in the summer of 2022, Ilivitzky set off to visit the factory in the city of Ivano-Frankivsk

“It was a really impressive, well-maintained and well-organised factory. The production was very impressive. You could see straight away that they know how to carry out industrial production efficiently,” says Ilivitzky.

A cooperation agreement was signed in August 2022. It was agreed with the Ukrainian side that RTL-Inductives would supply the technology and materials. Karpaty would be responsible for the workforce, production management and manufacturing.

Support from Finnpartnership helped the company get started

In early 2023, RTL-Inductives was granted Business Partnership Support from Finnpartnership to relocate its production from Russia to Ukraine. It was the first project for which Finnpartnership granted the funding to Ukraine following the start of Russia’s war of aggression.

According to Ilivitzky, the company used the support specifically to train the staff of its Ukrainian subcontractor and to cover travel and other costs associated with starting up production. The first six Karpaty employees were trained at RTL-Inductives’ factory in Uusikaupunki for around two months.

“Without Finnpartnership’s support, relocating production to Ukraine would have been considerably more difficult for us. The support helped us to launch the training and move the project forward.”

Ilivitzky says that the need for training turned out to be greater than initially estimated. Although Karpaty had experience of industrial subcontracting and, amongst other things, the manufacture of cable harnesses for the automotive industry, the production of RTL-Inductives’ specialised components was new to the employees.

The war hasn’t had impact on production

According to Ilivitzky, Finnpartnership’s support helped to establish cooperation in Ukraine, which the company now intends to expand further. Production began with the simplest chokes and transformers. By the end of 2023, eight product types were in regular production. Two years later, the number of product types had already risen to 129.

“Production is now running really well,” Ilivitzky says.

In addition to production, RTL-Inductives had to set up a logistics chain between Ukraine and Finland. The company delivers materials to Karpaty, from where the manufactured products are transported to customers in Finland.

“The logistics arrangement we’ve put in place overcomes the bureaucratic hurdles between Ukraine and the EU, particularly during the start-up phase.”

According to Ilivitzky, the war has not disrupted production in western Ukraine. In terms of logistics, the effects are evident, for example, in the queues at the Polish Ukrainian border.

Aiming to set up an own business in Ukraine

Ivano-Frankivsk, situated near the Polish border, is, in Ilivitzky’s view, an excellent location for production, as it is a short distance from the EU market. He sees Ukraine as an attractive industrial production base in the long term.

“After the war, Ukraine is in a very strong position in terms of various supplies and can offset some of our current dependence on China.”

RTL-Inductives intends to continue developing its operations in Ukraine. The next objective is to establish its own company in the country, which would primarily serve as a logistics centre and coordinate subcontracting and material flows.

According to Ilivitzky, the sudden shutdown of production in Russia and its relocation to Finland and Ukraine significantly reduced the family-run business’s turnover, increased costs and led to several years of losses.

The company’s liquidity was further weakened when the bank that had long provided its financing unexpectedly terminated the client relationship. Due to financial difficulties, the company was forced to seek corporate reorganisation.

“After some difficult years, things are looking better now,” says Ilivitzky.

In 2025, RTL-Inductives returned to profit after several years of losses. In September 2026, the number of orders received was around 50 per cent higher than a year earlier.

Images: RTL-Inductives