MECHEL REPORTS SUCCESSFUL INSTALLATION OF NEW ELECTRIC FURNACE AT BRATSK
FERROALLOY PLANT

Bratsk, Russia – March 20, 2012 – Mechel OAO (NYSE: MTL), one of the leading
Russian mining and metals companies, announces that a ferroalloy electric
furnace was installed and the first smelting of ferrosilicon conducted as part
of modernization of Bratsk Ferroalloy Plant of the group’s ferroalloys division.
This is the first ferroalloy electric furnace to be installed as part of the
contract between Bratsk Ferroalloy Plant and Sibir Electrothermal Equipment
Plant OAO to supply four ferroalloy electric furnaces with the capacity of 33
MVA each to replace the existing furnaces with the capacity of 25 MVA, and to
supervise installation and commissioning works.
Bratsk Ferroalloy Plant’s reconstruction began in late 2010 and will be
completed in 2013. After the new furnaces are commissioned, Bratsk Ferroalloy
Plant’s production capacity will increase by 30% and its power consumption will
be reduced by 10-13%.
Investment in the project topped 1.9 billion rubles (65 million US dollars*).
Reconstruction measures preserves the plant’s entire existing infrastructure
which enables the plant to substantially cut costs and save time in implementing
the project.
Technical revamping of ferrosilicon production includes reconstruction of the
raw materials dosage system and expansion of storage space for finished
products.
Mechel Ferroalloys Management OOO’s Chief Executive Officer Gennady Ovchinnikov
noted: “Successful installation and launch of the new electric furnace confirm
that the path we chose to modernize production is right and will substantially
improve Bratsk Ferroalloy Plant’s efficiency. Thanks to state-of-the-art
technologies, the plant will also be able to cut its electricity expenses.”
* Based upon the Russian Central Bank exchange rate of 29.22 RUR/$ as of March
20, 2012.
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Mechel OAO
Ekaterina Videman
Tel: + 7 495 221 88 88
ekaterina.videman@mechel.com
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Mechel is one of the leading Russian companies. Its business includes four
segments: mining, steel, ferroalloy and power. Mechel unites producers of coal,
iron ore concentrate, nickel, ferrochrome, ferrosilicon, steel, rolled products,
hardware, heat and electric power. Mechel products are marketed domestically and
internationally.
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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.