RPT-Update 1-Russia Mechel Q2 coking coal output 1.2 mln/t

* Mechel (MTL.N) Q2 coking coal output up 19 pct vs Q1

* H1 coking coal output down 73 pct vs yr-earlier period

* Co has "positive outlook" for H2, wants to tap new markets

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MOSCOW, July 15 (Reuters) - Russia's Mechel said on
Wednesday that second quarter coking coal production reached 1.2
million tonnes, up 19 percent from the first quarter, but first
half output was off sharply from a year ago on weak demand.

First half coking coal production totalled 2.3 million
tonnes, 73 percent less than the figure Mechel published last
July.

First half steel output reached 2.5 million tonnes, 18
percent below the figure published last year.

The company did not provide year-earlier comparison's in
Wednesday's press release.

"In mining division in view of decreased demand for coking
coal especially in the domestic market we concentrated most of
our efforts on finding new customers particularly in Asia,"
Senior Vice President Vladimir Polin said in the statement.

Russian coking coal producers have suffered this year as
prices have dropped sharply on reduced demand from the steel
industry, which uses their product to smelt iron ore.

Rival Raspadskaya (RASP.MM) on Tuesday said its first half
sales fell 4 percent from the year-earlier period to 4.2 million
tonnes. [ID:nLE633338]

Mechel did not provide any financial guidance for the second
half of the year, though it said it has a "positive outlook."

"In general, taking into account the emerging tendencies we
have a positive outlook for the second half of 2009 and intend
to continue our activities in order to increase production
tapping new market niches and increasing the company's share in
the markets we specialize at," Polin said.

Mechel provided the following data for its first half
production (in million tonnes, unless specified):
Product H1 yr/yr pct change
Coal 6.429 -54.2
Coking coal 2.280 -73.0
Steam coal 4.149 -25.8
Coal concentrate 3.129 -59.8
Coking 2.093 -66.7
Steam 1.036 -31.1
Iron ore
concentrate 1.954 -20.9
Nickel (tonnes) 7,100 -22.0
Ferrosilicon
(tonnes) 44,000 -2.0
Ferrochrome
(tonnes) 23,300 n/a
Hardware 0.297 -22.3
Forgings 0.024 -38.5
Stampings 0.027 -42.6
Rolled products 2.412 -15.5
Flat products 0.146 -36.5
Long products 1.697 -1.9
Billets 0.569 n/a
Steel 2.497 -18.4
Pig iron 1.651 -10.9
Coke 1.263 -31.3
Electric power
generation
(mln kWh) 1.574 -27.0

(Reporting by Alfred Kueppers, Editing by Michael Kahn)