Black Iron Inc.  (TSX:BKI) (FRANKFURT:BIN) has received approval from Serbia’s Commission for the Protection of Competition for its previously announced strategic investment and development arrangement with Metinvest B.V. in respect of Black Iron (Cyprus) Ltd. a wholly-owned subsidiary of Black Iron. The receipt of the Serbian CPC approval of the development arrangement satisfies the second of three approvals required for the arrangement to proceed. Black Iron has previously received approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange for the arrangement. The one remaining approval required to close the development arrangement is from the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

“We continue to de-risk the Black Iron story as we move towards construction of the Shymanivske Iron Ore Mine. The receipt of approval from the Serbian Commission for the Protection of Competition is an important step in completing the Metinvest transaction, which is our single largest strategic development to date,” stated Matt Simpson, President & CEO of Black Iron Inc. “Documentation has been submitted by both Black Iron and Metinvest for the final antimonopoly approval in Ukraine and we remain confident the review process will conclude positively in three to five months. In the mean time, we continue to make significant strides on the development process and prospective off-take for Shymanivske. We anticipate significant developments with respect to the Project throughout the fourth quarter of this year and first quarter of 2014.”

About Black Iron

Black Iron is an iron ore exploration and development company, advancing its 100 percent-owned Shymanivske project located in Kryviy Rih, Ukraine. This project contains an NI 43-101 compliant resource, with 645.8 Mt Measured and Indicated mineral resources, consisting of 355.1 Mt Measured mineral resources grading 32.0% Total iron and 19.5% Magnetic iron, and Indicated mineral resources of 290.7 Mt grading 31.1% Total iron and 17.9% Magnetic iron, using a cut-off grade of 10% Magnetic iron. Additionally, the project contains 188.3 Mt of Inferred mineral resources grading 30.1% Total iron and 18.4% Magnetic iron. The project is surrounded by five other operating mines, including ArcelorMittal’s iron ore complex. The Company believes that existing infrastructure, including access to power, rail and port facilities, will allow for a quick development timeline to production. Further, the Company holds an exploration permit for the adjacent Zelenivske project, which it intends to further explore to determine its potential.