OREANDA-NEWS. OAO Raspadskaya announces its preliminary operational results for Q4 2015.

In Q4 2015, raw coal production totalled 2.5 million tonnes, down 6% quarter-onquarter. This was due to longwall moves at the Raspadskaya mine following completion of mining at its the highly productive 5a-7-28 face in November 2015.

Production of premium K-grade coal rose to 145 thousand tonnes, up 50 thousand tonnes quarter-on-quarter, due to development of the second field of the Raspadskaya-Koksovaya mine.

Raw coal production fell by 24% year-on-year due to the following factors:
- In the period, the Raspadskaya mine reported record production, driven by operations at four faces that yielded 600 thousand tonnes a month. At present, as part of measures to improve production efficiency and reduce mining costs, it is working on three faces.
- Production at the high-cost MUK-96 mine was suspended as part of a costsaving plan.
- Production at field no. 1 at Raspadskaya-Koksovaya was stopped after carbon monoxide was detected, in accordance with the Company's strict safety standards. At the same time, field no. 2 at Raspadskaya-Koksovaya launched extraction of a new type of premium K-grade coal that the Company did not produce in the same period last year.

In Q4 2015, sales of coking coal concentrate totalled 1.4 million tonnes, down 18% quarter-on-quarter, amid lower demand in Russia and difficulties delivering to Ukraine. The Company solid 65 thousand tonnes of premium K-grade concentrate and 34 thousand tonnes of premium K-grade coal.

Russia accounted for 32% of the Company's overall concentrate sales in the period, down 10 percentage points year-on-year. The remaining 68% was exported.

Domestic sales of concentrate fell to 450 thousand tonnes, down 38% year-on-year, due to the following factors: o Many major Russian steelmakers increased their internal consumption. o Production of KO-grade coal stopped when field no. 1 at RaspadskayaKoksovaya was closed.

Overall sales of raw coal decreased by 57% year-on-year, driven by the closure of field no. 1 at Raspadskaya-Koksovaya.

The weighted average selling price of concentrate in ruble terms changed little compared with Q3 2015. Prices rose in Russia and remained steady on the export markets, as the ruble devalued.