LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Ukrainian steel giant Metinvest is exploring whether it could issue new debt to cover a near $430 million bond payment due in April that it has also been in talks to potentially restructure, its chief executive has told Reuters. 

Metinvest remains Ukraine's largest private company, but four years of war with Russia have seen it lose roughly half of its operations, including some of its biggest steel and coal facilities. 

Earlier this month, it paused talks with a group of its bondholders about restructuring $1.25 billion of its debt, saying it would explore "alternative liability management transactions".

Speaking to Reuters about Tuesday's anniversary of the start of the conflict, Metinvest CEO Yuriy Ryzhenkov discussed the impact it has had on the firm and its financing options.

He said there were "many avenues", especially after poultry giant MHP last month became the first Ukrainian company since Russia invaded in 2022 to sell an international bond.

"We're listening to what the market is saying, what they (investors) can be comfortable with," Ryzhenkov told Reuters by phone.

"We would be comfortable to go with a three-year bond, we would be comfortable to go with a five-year. It obviously depends on the other details, on the covenants and the cost of the debt. So we'll have to strike some sort of a balance."    

ACCEPTABLE COST?

Bankers say Metinvest would probably have to pay 1-2 percentage points more than the 10.5% MHP paid last month to borrow $450 million over three years.

That would not be sustainable long-term, said Alan Siow, co-head of EM corporate debt at Ninety One. But it would mean the firm retains market access and could refinance at a better level if the situation improves.

For now it remains precarious.

Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure in recent months have meant Metinvest's plants have suffered power outages almost every day and required it to buy in power generators.

Staffing is also an issue. Before the war the iron and steel sector contributed around 10% of Ukraine's GDP and employed more than 600,000 people - more than 100,000 of them at Metinvest.

Its losses though, including the huge Azovstal plant that became a major battleground with Russian forces early in the war, mean the number is now around 50,000. With roughly 8,000 conscripted to the army, women are an increasingly vital part of its workforce.

"The female workforce is about 30%," Ryzhenkov said. "That's something which wasn't heard of in the past," adding it included almost every role from crane operators to big truck drivers.

BOND OPTIONS

Ryzhenkov said Metinvest's other financing options included a private debt deal, using the firm's existing resources, or going back to the restructuring plans discussed in recent months.

If it did opt for a bond, Ryzhenkov added there was leeway on how much it would need to borrow. It has a $428 million payment to make by April 23, but has got some cash it could utilise.

"Depending on the conditions from the market, we can go for $300 million (bond) or we can go for $500 if the conversations are good, if the cost is acceptable," he said.

A spokesperson for Deutsche Bank, which helped organise a recent roadshow with Metinvest investors, didn't respond to a request for comment on the potential for a bond sale.

Ryzhenkov said Metinvest had time before it needed to decide anything and that he was optimistic.

"Either we find the market solution which will basically resolve everything, or we will have an agreement with our creditors (to reprofile the bond)," he said.  

(Reporting by Marc Jones; Editing by Toby Chopra and Hugh Lawson)

By Marc Jones