Aleris Begins Soliciting Approval for Plan of Reorganization

BEACHWOOD, Ohio, March 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Aleris International, Inc., a global leader in aluminum rolled products, extrusions and recycling, announced today that it has reached a settlement with the Committee of Unsecured Creditors appointed in the Company's chapter 11 case, under which the amount of money available for payment to holders of Class 5 Claims was increased from an initial proposed amount of $4.0 million to $16.5 million.  The settlement has no impact on the potential recovery of any other classes of creditors under the plan.

The Company also said that it has begun the process of soliciting approval from eligible creditors for the Company's proposed Plan of Reorganization.  The solicitation package mailed today contains the Disclosure Statement and information on the amended Plan and includes a letter stating the clear support for the Plan by the Committee of Unsecured Creditors.

"We are pleased to have the support of the unsecured creditors as we solicit votes to approve the Plan, bringing us closer to completion of the Chapter 11 process," said Steven J. Demetriou, Aleris Chairman and CEO.  "This support, along with the support of our largest lenders, reflects their confidence in our ability to emerge by mid-year as planned."

As previously reported, the confirmation hearing for the Plan has been scheduled for May 13, 2010.  

Claims information and Court filings, including the proposed Plan and Disclosure Statement are available at http://www.kccllc.net/Aleris.

This press release is not intended to be, and should not in any way be construed as, a solicitation of votes on the Plan.  This press release is not an offering of the rights or equity or debt securities to be offered pursuant to the rights offering. Such securities will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States unless registered under such Act or pursuant to an applicable exemption there from.

About Aleris

Aleris International, Inc. is a global leader in aluminum rolled products and extrusions, aluminum recycling and specification alloy production. Headquartered in Beachwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, the Company operates over 40 production facilities in North America, Europe, South America and Asia, and employs approximately 6,500 employees. For more information about Aleris, please visit our Website at http://www.Aleris.com.

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SOURCE Aleris International, Inc.