MOSCOW, May 31 (RIA Novosti) - Severstal (RTS: CHMF), Russia's largest steelmaker, will buy mining and processing assets from Cyprus' Frontdeal for 117.203 billion rubles (about $4.33 bln), the company said Wednesday.
The deal was approved by an extraordinary shareholders meeting on May 29.
Cyprus-registered Frontdeal Limited is owned by Severstal owner Alexei Mordashov.
Severstal will transfer to the Cypriot company 365,413,374 ordinary registered shares at par value of 0.01 rubles and placement price of 320.74 rubles (about $11.80) per share in exchange for Frontdeal assets.
International ratings agency Standard & Poor's said earlier it had revised its outlook on Severstal from stable to positive due to the company's plans to consolidate its mining assets, and also confirmed its B+ corporate credit rating on the company and its ruA+ national scale rating.
In the long term, Severstal's credit status will depend on the company's strategy, which focuses on geographic diversification and modernization of its asset base in Russia, the agency said.
Severstal last week agreed a merger with world No. 2 Arcelor that will create the world's largest steel producer.
