Mechel boosts H1 IFRS EBITDA 9% to 25.7 bln rubles, net debt down 9% to 445 bln rubles
MOSCOW. Aug 29 (Interfax) - Mechel posted earnings before taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of 25.721 billion rubles in the first half of 2016 under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS , 9% more than in the same period last year, the coal and steel group reported.
Mechel swung to a net profit of 8.3 billion rubles in the period from a net loss of 16.746 billion rubles a year earlier.
Net debt stood at 444.771 billion rubles as of the end of June 2016, down 8.6% from 486.685 billion rubles as of year-end.
"A number of external and internal factors had their positive impact on the company's results. The beginning of spring brought a revival of steelmaking commodities export markets and the domestic steel market. Product prices demonstrated growth compared to the minimums reached at the end of the previous year and at the beginning of this year. The market situation prompted a growth of the company's operating profit and improvement of its financial results. In this period we completed restructuring of our loans with Russian state banks, which enabled us to balance our financial payments," said Mechel CEO Oleg Korzhov.
"Currently we see weaker activity on the metals market, which is offset by a major growth of spot prices for hard coking coal, and that will enable us to retain the Group's profitability as a whole," he said.
Mechel financial highlights in H1 2016 (mln rubles):
| H1 2016 | H1 2016/H1 2015 | |
| Sales revenue | 130 197 | - |
| Operating profit | 17 200 | 23% |
| EBITDA | 25 721 | 9% |
| EBITDA margin | 20% | 2 pp |
| Net profit | 8 300 | - |
| Net debt | 444 771 | 402 965* |
*Net debt was 486.685 billion rubles as at December 31, 2015
