Ukrnafta EGM Fails to Make Quorum

According to Interfax, Ukrnafta (UNAF: SELL) failed to conduct its EGM yesterday due to lack of quorum; only shareholders representing 0.47% of the company’s stock convened. The EGM agenda included the issue of paying 2006 dividends; Ukrnafta’s net income in 2006 according to UAS amounted to UAH 2.41 bln (USD 0.48 bln). Vladimir Nesterenko: We did expect the shareholders to not decide on dividends at this EGM, yet we still hope to see some progress later this year. Our view is that a dividend payout is conditional on Privat’s success in getting a higher gas price from the state. The group is also likely to push for royalty discounts for exhausted fields, but chances look extremely low. Please refer to our Jan. 22 company update for more details.