Evraz should take control of blast mine: governor

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian steelmaker Evraz Group should take full control of the company which operates a Siberian mine where 38 people died in a methane blast on Thursday, Kemerovo region governor Aman Tuleyev said.

A methane explosion killed 38 people at the Yubileynaya mine in the Kemerovo region of western Siberia. In March, 110 miners were killed at a neighboring mine owned by the same company.

The Yubileynaya mine is operated by Yuzhkuzbassugol -- 50 percent owned by its management, which has operational control, and 50 percent owned by Evraz.

"We have made a proposal to change the ownership. We consider Evraz Holding should be the owner. That is our proposal," Tuleyev said in comments broadcast on the Vesti-24 television channel.

"Evraz should change the whole management," he said.

A spokesman for Tuleyev told RIA news agency that the governor wanted management of Yuzhkuzbassugol to sell their stake to Evraz.

"Tuleyev wants the private individuals to sell their shares to Evraz," the spokesman said.

Evraz shares closed down 1.3 percent after falling as much as 2.9 percent in London.

Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Britain's Chelsea soccer club, has a 41 percent stake in Evraz through his Millhouse investment vehicle.