2.8.2013
August 2nd, 2013 The company EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL has signed a partnership agreement with the HC VÍTKOVICE STEEL hockey club. For another season, EVRAZ will remain the club’s general partner. The contract also includes another “EVRAZ hockey academy”, an event for children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds.
EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL, a.s. is a long-term partner of the HC VÍTKOVICE STEEL hockey club. Sponsoring hockey in Vítkovice is an important, socially beneficial investment by EVRAZ in the Czech Republic.
“We have been supporting Ostrava’s hockey since we’ve entered Vítkovice Steel in 2005. This support is part of our strategy for helping develop sports in the region. We believe that with our financial resources, we can help keep hockey in the region at a professional level. We wish the club the best of luck in the new season and hope that it will succeed in representing our region well this year,” says Dmitrij Ščuka, Chairman of the Board of EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL, a.s.
For the hockey club, the contract was signed by Ing. Aleš Pavlík, a member of the Board of HC VÍTKOVICE STEEL, a.s. “We know that it is currently hard to allocate finances for any sport and that the even though the amount is smaller than what got in the past from EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL, we are thankful that the top management has kept its word and will support us another season.”
The City of Ostrava is also a long-term partner of the hockey club. Ing. Martin Štěpánek, Ph.D., Deputy Lord Mayor of the City of Ostrava: “Hockey in Vítkovice has been a part of this town since the 1930’s and it is very important for the residents of Ostrava. We are happy that EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL remains the club’s general partner and will thus help the club maintain what is necessary for its activity and further development.”
Part of the contract is the agreement to again organize the annual “EVRAZ hockey academy” designed for children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds. The main idea is to give the children an opportunity to actively spend their free time with a member of HC VÍTKOVICE STEEL, learn team play and cooperation, find new friends and discover the talent hidden within them. The children have access to the necessary protective equipment and jerseys with a logo. During every training, one of the coaches of the Vítkovice youth and an A-Team player dedicate themselves to the children.
Last year, which was also the first, 23 children from grades 3-9 took part in the event. They practiced their hockey skills twice a week. The project was designed with the goal of giving children from disadvantaged backgrounds new experiences, help them determine their own principles, find the right direction in life including recognition of correct values and respect for the rules. Ladislav Svozil, HC VÍTKOVICE STEEL’s Sports Manager, is the sport supervisor of this project.
***
Crest Communications Ostrava
Jaromír Krišica
Work cell: +420 603 543 572
krisica@crestcom.cz
EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL specializes in the production of steel and its subsequent products: thick plates and cut shapes from thick plates. The goal of the company is to continue increasing the sales of products with a high added value, for example, the supply of plates for product pipelines. Thanks to the indispensable support of the Evraz Group and its strong position on the Russian and world markets, the company successfully entered the Russian product pipeline market. In the field of thick plate production, EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL is the main European manufacturer and the dominant producer in the Czech Republic.
EVRAZ is a vertically integrated steel, mining and vanadium business with operations in the Russian Federation, Ukraine, USA, Canada, Czech Republic, Italy and South Africa. EVRAZ is among the top steel producers in the world based on crude steel production of 15.9 million tonnes in 2012. In 2012 EVRAZ sold 15.3 million tonnes of steel products. A significant portion of the company's internal consumption of iron ore and coking coal is covered by its mining operations. The company's consolidated revenues for the year ended 31 December 2012 were US$14,726 million, and consolidated EBITDA amounted to US$ 2,012 million.
