20 Feb, 14:05

Mechel agrees to postpone part of principal debt payments worth $395.8 mln

Mechel Group's net debt at the end of 2024 increased by 4% and amounted to 259.4 bln rubles ($2.93 bln)

MOSCOW, February 20. /TASS/. At the end of 2024, Mechel Group agreed with a Russian bank to postpone the repayment schedule of debt in the amount of 35 bln rubles ($395.8 mln) from 2025-2026 to 2027-2030, according to the company's IFRS financial statements for 2024.

Mechel Group's net debt at the end of 2024 increased by 4% and amounted to 259.4 bln rubles ($2.93 bln).

"At the end of 2024, the Group agreed to postpone the repayment of part of the principal debt in the amount of 34,975 mln rubles from 2025-2026 to 2027-2030, and to obtain a loan from one of the Russian banks in the amount of 28,000 mln rubles to replenish working capital until 2030. Other key terms of the agreements remained unchanged from the original agreements," the report said.

These agreements will allow the Group to reduce the burden on cash flow in 2025-2026, provide financing for current operations and, if market conditions normalize, repay debt in a timely manner.

Earlier, a representative of the company told TASS that Mechel Group had agreed to postpone payments on a portion of the main debt from 2025-2026 to 2027-2030.

Mechel's main creditors are Gazprombank and VTB.

Mechel reported earlier that it has lowered steelmaking by 4% annually to 3.35 mln metric tons in 2024. Coal mining edged up by 5% year on year in the reporting period to 10.86 mln metric tons, Mechel said. Pig iron production lost 6% to 2.99 mln metric tons. Coking coal concentrate sales gained 30% to 4.05 mln metric tons. Steam coal sales surged by 28% annually to 2.97 mln metric tons.

Mechel unites producers of coal, iron ore concentrate, steel, rolled products, ferroalloys, highly processed products, heat, and electric power.

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