The article is written on a topic not very popular among historians, dedicated to the most important branch of non-ferrous metallurgy, copper, in one of the leading metallurgical regions in Russia - the Urals. The issues of the industry's exit from the most powerful crisis associated with the transition from a planned to a market economy are considered. The changes that have taken place in the non-ferrous metallurgy sub-sector in the context of the formation of new market structures are shown. When writing the article, data from the Union of Entrepreneurs of the Sverdlovsk Region were used.