Mechel, one of the leading Russian mining and steel groups, has issued its financial results for the first half of 2009.
Accordingly, during the period in question,
Mechel's revenue decreased by 54 percent year on year to $2.46 billion, its operating income went down by 102.5 percent year on year to negative $40.943 million, while its EBITDA for the first six months of 2009 decreased by 105.5 percent year on year to negative $104.335 million.
For H1 2009,
Mechel reported a consolidated net loss of $471.378 million, a decrease of 142.8 percent over the consolidated net income of $1.1 billion in the same period last year. "Generally the first half of 2009 was the most challenging period for
Mechel during the crisis. Significant efforts were required to adopt the company to the deteriorated global economy, to protect the
production from shutdowns and then to restore it to pre-crisis levels as promptly as possible,"
Mechel's CEO Igor Zyuzin commented.
On the other hand, in the second quarter of the current year,
Mechel managed to increase its revenues by 8.6 percent quarter on quarter to $1.28 billion, reflecting the beginning of the recovery of its
production volumes, and to register a net income of $219.3 million compared to the net loss of $690.7 million in the first quarter of the year.
"For our mining segment the worst part of 2009 is over and we will witness only improvement of the segment's performance later," Mr. Zyuzin stated, adding also that the company's steel segment "managed to restore its pre-crisis
production levels during the second quarter 2009, and in some products even slightly improved them."
According to the company's statement,
Mechel refinanced its debt portfolio with an international banks syndicate. As of June 30, 2009,
Mechel's total debt stood at $5.92 billion. The company's cash and cash equivalents amounted to $822.4 million at the end of the first half of 2009, while its net debt amounted to $5.09 billion.
Mechel's capital expenditure on property, plant and equipment and acquisition of mineral licenses for the first half of 2009 amounted to $223.2 million, of which $86.3 million was invested in the mining segment, $121.5 million in the steel segment, $13.1 million in the ferroalloy segment, and $2.2 million in the power segment.