MOSCOW, June 18, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mechel OAO (NYSE:MTL), one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, announces the decision of the company's Board of Directors to authorize the buy back of up to $100 million of ADRs representing Mechel OAO's common shares.
These repurchases will be made in open market or privately negotiated transactions from time to time, subject to market conditions, applicable legal requirements and other factors. This plan does not obligate Mechel to acquire any particular number of ADRs and the plan may be suspended at any time at the company's discretion. The buyback will be done on behalf of Skyblock Limited, Mechel OAO's 100-percent owned subsidiary.
"The Board of Directors has a diligent approach toward appraising capital structure and studying ways to efficiently use cash flows to increase the company's shareholder value. The buyback decision reflects the Board's confidence that the fundamental value of our company's shares is higher, and meets the interests of all of its shareholders", Mechel OAO's Chief Financial Officer Stanislav Ploschenko noted.
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.
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.