MOSCOW, May 25 (RAPSI) – The Moscow Commercial Court ordered the mining and metals holding company Mechel and three of its subsidiaries to pay Sberbank $10.6 million and 6.8 million rubles (about $136,500) over defaulted debts, RAPSI reported from the courtroom on Monday.

State-run bank Sberbank filed a lawsuit to collect the money under two loan agreements of October 9, 2012 and two novation agreements, of December 5, 2012 and March 4, 2013. The lawsuit was brought against the Southern Kuzbass Coal Company and its guarantors – Mechel, Mechel Mining and Yakutugol Holding.

At the same time, the court rejected a counter-claim filed by Southern Kuzbass. The coal company argued that it borrowed 5 billion rubles ($100.4 million) and 7.9 billion rubles (about $160 million) from Sberbank, and that novation deeds include a provision according to which the borrower would repay the loan in US dollars if the dollar rate soared to 50 rubles, but at 30 rubles per dollar. The bank demanded that the court collect the interest debt plus penalties from Southern Kuzbass.

Mechel argues that the novation deeds are invalid because the bank abused its powers by shifting risks to the borrower without consideration, and that these agreements disrupt the balance of the sides’ interests, undermine the national currency and in fact amount to deeds of gift, which are prohibited between corporate partners. One of the guarantors said that because of these violations, the borrower’s obligations increased from 13 billion rubles ($261,100) to 21 billion rubles (about $422 million) virtually overnight.

Mechel is heavily in debt including $2.3 billion to Gazprombank, $1.8 billion to VTB and $1.3 billion to Sberbank.

Industry Minister Denis Manturov said in March that Mechel cut its debt to $6.4 billion from $8.6 billion, according to RIA Novosti. About 40 percent of Mechel’s debt is in rubles.