Mechel Reports Signing Long-Term Deal with Japan’s JFE Steel Corporation

The agreement will be in force until August 2018.

According to the agreement, Mechel will annually supply JFE Steel up to 1 million tonnes of metallurgical coals, mostly coking coal concentrate produced by Yakutugol Holding Company OAO, as well as coking coal concentrate produced at the Elga coal deposit. The price will be determined based on the market situation.

Apart from JFE Steel, Mechel supplies coal to several other leading Japanese steelmaking corporations. JFE Steel has been a client of Neryungri coal producers since 1985 and has proved to be Mechel’s longstanding and reliable partner. In 2013 JFE Steel Corporation was the first to acquire the trial export batch of the Elga deposit’s coking coal concentrate. After a series of industrial tests, our partner gave a highly appreciative opinion of Elga products’ quality and voiced their interest in long-term ties.

“We are grateful to our partner for their trust – this is Mechel’s first contract to be signed with a Japanese company for such a long term. We consider this three-year agreement with JFE Steel as an important step in implementing our strategy of diversifying our sales and strengthening ties with Asia Pacific’s key steelmakers. Considering global commodity markets’ volatility, we make it our priority to preserve our client base and ensure a stable flow of orders for our Group’s coal producers,” Mechel Mining Management Company OOO’s Chief Executive Officer Pavel Shtark commented.