Mechel Reports Signing Agreements With Sberbank for Restructuring Part of Mechel OAO Debt to Sberbank (25.5 BLN Rubles)

MOSCOW, Dec. 20, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mechel OAO (NYSE:MTL), one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, announces signing agreements with Sberbank of Russia on restructuring a part of Mechel OAO's debt to the bank (25.5 billion rubles, approximately 773 million US dollars*). The Group's obligations to the bank are extended by 5 years, with a grace period until the first quarter of 2015.

The conditions of this restructuring stipulate refinancing of Mechel Group's existing debt to Sberbank of Russia for a total of 25.5 billion rubles. The restructuring involves the Group's short-term debt to Sberbank of Russia, whose maturity fell on December 2013 – December 2014. This restructuring concerns only the Group's existing debt and will not increase Mechel Group's total debt portfolio.

"Sberbank of Russia is Mechel's longstanding strategic partner, and this deal is yet another proof of our successful cooperation. We are grateful to Sberbank for their trust and support. Reaching this agreement, together with our creditors', including Sberbank's, approval of covenant holidays, enabled us to stabilize our company's financial situation," Chairman of Mechel OAO's Board of Directors Igor Zyuzin noted.

* Based upon the Russian Central Bank exchange rate of 32.95 RUR/$ as of December 20, 2013.

Mechel is an international mining and steel company which employs over 80,000 people. Its products are marketed in Europe, Asia, North and South America, Africa. Mechel unites producers of coal, iron ore concentrate, steel, rolled products, ferroalloys, heat and electric power. All of its enterprises work in a single production chain, from raw materials to high value-added products.

Some of the information in this press release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of Mechel, as defined in the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. We wish to caution you that these statements are only predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially. We do not intend to update these statements. We refer you to the documents Mechel files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Form 20-F. These documents contain and identify important factors, including those contained in the section captioned "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in our Form 20-F, that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those contained in our projections or forward-looking statements, including, among others, the achievement of anticipated levels of profitability, growth, cost and synergy of our recent acquisitions, the impact of competitive pricing, the ability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals and licenses, the impact of developments in the Russian economic, political and legal environment, volatility in stock markets or in the price of our shares or ADRs, financial risk management and the impact of general business and global economic conditions.

Mechel OAO
Ekaterina Videman
Tel: +7 495 221-88-88
Ekaterina.videman@mechel.ru