OREANDA-NEWS. Mechel PAO (NYSE: MTL; MICEX: MTLR), a leading Russian mining and metals company, announces that Glass Lewis and ISS, independent proxy advisory firms, have recommended that Mechel PAO shareholders vote to approve the deals with creditors at the Company’s extraordinary general meeting scheduled for May 26, 2016.

Glass Lewis and ISS recommended that Mechel shareholders approve the transactions on providing and changing suretyships and pledges provided by the company to the following lenders: Sberbank PJSC, Gazprombank (Joint Stock Company), VTB Bank (PJSC) and the syndicate of banks, noting that approval of the transactions is essential for the success of Mechel PAO’s debt restructuring and stressing that their terms have been reviewed and unanimously approved by a special committee of independent directors and an independent appraiser.

ISS and Glass Lewis are the leading independent international proxy advisory firms, and their voting analyses and recommendations are relied upon by thousands of major institutional investment firms, mutual funds and fiduciaries throughout the world.

Mechel’s Board earlier addressed minority shareholders, calling on them to support the proposed debt restructuring plan, based on an independent consultant’s fairness opinion.

Mechel is an international mining and steel company which employs over 67,000 people. Its products are marketed in Europe, Asia, North and South America, Africa. Mechel unites producers of coal, iron ore concentrate, steel, rolled products, ferroalloys, heat and electric power. All of its enterprises work in a single production chain, from raw materials to high valueadded products.