Moscow, Russia – December 27, 2010 – Mechel OAO (NYSE: MTL), one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, announces the Board of Directors’ decision to open its official representative offices in the Southern Federal District and the Amur Region.

The decision to open Mechel OAO’s representative offices in the Southern Federal District’s city of Rostov-on-Don and the Amur Region’s city of Blagoveshchensk was made at the meeting of the Board of Directors on December 22, 2010.

Mr. Sergei M. Nazarov was appointed Head of the representative office in the Southern Federal District. The legal address of the representative office is: 344010, Russian Federation, Rostov Region, Rostov-on-Don, Semashko alley, 114.

The new representative office will allow for more efficient management of the Mechel group’s assets in the Southern Federal District, as well as prompt reaction to the region’s needs in its intensive development in view of 2014Winter Olympics at Sochi and 2018 World Football Championship which will be held partly in the Southern District (the cities of Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don and Sochi).

Mr. Oleg V. Burkov was appointed Head of the representative office in the Amur Region. The legal address of the representative office is: 675000, Russian Federation, Blagoveshchensk, Amur Region, Krasnoarmeyskaya St, 173, office 102.

The representative office will provide more efficient assistance to the Mechel group’s enterprises in constructing and exploiting the Elga Coal Complex, as well as actual data on several major federal projects, such as construction of the Vostochny cosmodrome, modernization of the Trans-Siberian Railway and the Baykal-Amur Railroad’s northern latitudinal passage.

The functions of both representative offices will include establishing and maintenance of contacts with government authorities and business community of the Southern Federal District and the Amur Region respectively, representation of Mechel group’s interests, strengthening cooperation with Mechel’s partners and establishing new relations to ensure expansion of the group’s activities.