New York: Essar Steel Holdings Limited (Essar) yesterday informed the Esmark Board of Directors that Essar is providing notice of its intention to increase its offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Esmark. Upon execution of the Merger Agreement, Essar will increase its offer to USD 19 per share. Essar Steel is a part of the multi-billion dollar Essar Group. Essar Group is a diversified business conglomerate operating in the sectors of Steel, Energy, Power, Shipping & Logistics, Telecommunications, Mining & Minerals, and Construction.

Previously, on April 30, 2008, Essar entered into a memorandum of agreement with Esmark to acquire all the outstanding shares of Esmark for a cash purchase price of USD 17 per share. In connection with entering into the memorandum of agreement, Essar also extended a USD 110 million loan to Esmark, which helped the company address a potential default.

Essar has previously informed Esmark that it is prepared to recognize the United Steelworkers, assume the Basic Labor Agreement and negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement on an expedited basis. In setting forth its plans for Esmark, Essar has also proposed a capital expenditure program of USD 525 million for Esmark’s Ohio and West Virginia manufacturing facilities over the next five years.

In its letter dated June 10, 2008, Essar urged the Esmark Board to take all reasonable actions to create a level playing field among the bidders and to allow shareholders to receive maximum value for their shares.

Along with its acquisitions of the 4 MTPA Algoma Steel Plant in Canada, and Minnesota Steel in the U.S. which controls vast iron ore reserves, the Esmark acquisition will help Essar unleash greater synergies across its facilities in the Americas. Equally important, the acquisition will provide real benefits to Esmark workers, their families, and to the communities where they live and work. Integrating Esmark into Essar’s North American facilities will ensure security of supply of raw materials, and along with Essar’s proposed capital expenditure in Esmark’s Ohio and West Virginia plants, will produce higher production volumes and diversified and higher quality product. All this, in Essar’s assessment, will make Esmark a stronger organization with attendant benefits to its workforce, retirees as well as to the local economies of Ohio and West Virginia.

About Essar Group
Essar Group is a diversified corporate group with businesses in the manufacturing and services sectors of Steel, Energy, Power, Telecommunications, Shipping, Ports & Logistics, Mining & Mineral Resources, and Construction. Essar Group has a firm value of approximately USD 50 billion and employs 38,000 people worldwide. More than 6000 people of Essar’s workforce is in the Americas.

About Esmark Incorporated
Esmark Incorporated is a vertically integrated steel producer and distributor, combining steel production capabilities through both blast furnace and electric arc furnace technologies with the just-in-time delivery of value-added steel products to a broad customer base concentrated in the Ohio Valley and Midwest regions.

For more information, contact:
Madhu Vuppuluri, President, Essar-Americas, at +1 212 758 5520
Keith Dorman, Burson Marsteller, +1 412 874 0502
Manish Kedia, Sr. Vice President, Essar, India at +91 98197 30092
B Ganesh Pai, General Manager, Essar, India at +91 98197 30225
William Clutterbuck, Maitland, UK: +44 207 379 5151