MOSCOW, June 03./ITAR-TASS/. A Cypriot court has arrested assets of Cyprus-based companies controlling a 67.37% stake in Russian metals and mining group Mechel on demand from a minority shareholder, Vedomosti business daily reported Tuesday, quoting Sergei Uchitel, a representative of shareholder Saven Enterprises.

The arrested companies will not be able to sell or pledge their assets.

An undisclosed shareholder with a 22.95% stake in Mechel’s affiliates Tomusinsky Coal Mine and Saven Enterprises has submitted 4.9 billion rubles ($140 million) worth of suits against Mechel.

Uchilel said earlier that Tomusinsky Coal Mine and Mechel withdrew the net profit of Saven Enterprises illegally to redeem Mechel’s losses. “My guarantor wants a fair and legal distribution of profit within the company,” he said.

Mechel denies that any of claims against it have grounds, its representative told Vedomosti. “We see the suit as an attempt of corporate blackmailing in order to force Mechel to buy a minority stake in Tomusinsky from Saven Enterprises,” he said.

The mining group’s total loss stands at US $8.6 billion. In March, the company narrowly escaped a cross-default on a $150 million debt to Alfa Bank. Mechel also settled the repayment of its 140 million ruble ($400000) debt to Transgarant, a unit of FESCO shipping company, out of court.