Metinvest wins court hearing on Dniprovskyy Steel assets purchase

Dniprovskyy Steel won a court hearing related to its
sale of its assets to Metinvest’s subsidiary Dniprovskyy Coke, according to the
court decision published on Dec. 16.

 

The claim by Indumet S.A. (Luxembourg) against
Dniprovskyy Steel was denied in full by Dnipropetrovsk Region Economic Court on
Dec. 9.

 

Recall, Indumet sued Dniprovskyy Steel,
demanding that the results of the sale of its assets to Dniprovskyy Coke at an
auction in July, conducted as a part of its bankruptcy and financial recovery
process, be declared void.

 

Dniprovskyy Coke joined the court hearing on the side
of Dniprovskyy Steel (which is not a part of Metinvest).

 

The court found that Indumet’s demands must be denied
because the company was not a participant of the July auction and is not a
recognized creditor or a party in any role in Dniprovskyy Steel’s bankruptcy
case. Therefore, the auction’s results do not in any way influence Indumet’s
rights, the court concluded.

 

Indumet has until around January 3 to appeal the
decision.

 

Recall, in July, Dniprovskyy Coke acquired for USD 339 mln the PP&E
and other assets from Dniprovskyy Steel.

 

Indumet is affiliated with the Russian state
development corporation VEB.RF, according to Interfax-Ukraine. VEB.RF
reportedly was a stakeholder in Industrial Union of Donbas (IUD), which owns
Dniprovskyy Steel, the entity that sold its key metallurgical assets to
Dniprovskyy Coke.

 

Dmytro Khoroshun: The court
decision is positive for Metinvest because it decreases the risks related to
the company’s purchase of Dniprovskyy Steel’s assets.

 

However, this legal battle is not yet fully over
because of the possibility of appeals.