PPF Investments sold its stake in Oriel

PPF Investments sold its stake of 19.5% in Oriel Resource, the UK AIM listed company which owns Russian smelter and Kazakh chrome and nickel mines, to Meche OAO at the end of April 2008. The integrated mining and metal group Mechel OAO publicly announced the intention to acquire the entire issued share capital of Oriel on March 26, 2008.

Oriel Resources plc (www.orielresources.com)
Oriel Resources is a London-based and incorporated AIM (London Stock Exchange) and TSX (Toronto Stock Exchange) listed chrome and nickel mining and processing company.

The Company’s main country of operation is Kazakhstan. Oriel’s current mining projects include the Voskhod chrome and the Shevchenko nickel projects, both located in north western Kazakhstan. Interlinked with Voskhod is the vertically-integrated Tikhvin ferrochrome smelting plant in Russia, commenced production in April 2007 using imported ore and will being receiving and smelting chrome ore from Voskhod into high carbon ferrochrome (HC FeCr) in mid 2008.

Mechel OAO (www.mechel.com)
Mechel is a low-cost integrated mining and metals group with three main divisions: mining, stell production and processing and power generation. Mechel has facilities in Russia, Romania, Bulgaria and Lithuania.

PPF Investments (www.ppf.cz)
PPF Investments is an independent, international private equity group with a specific focus on transitional economies, such as those found in Central and Eastern Europe and Asia. Currently, PPF Investments is assessing investment opportunities in Russia, Ukraine, China, and Central and Eastern Europe. PPF Investments has offices in London, Prague, Kiev, Moscow, and Beijing.