Naftogaz pushes Ukrnafta and Ukrgaz-Energo to pay dividends

In an interview with weekly Kommentariyi on Friday, Naftogaz of Ukraine CEO Oleh Dubyna said that the company is negotiating with Ukrnafta (UNAF: BUY) and Ukrgaz-Energo shareholders on the distribution of their profits for 2006-2008 in the form of dividends. Dubyna said that the parties will reach an agreement soon, and Ukrnafta and Ukrgaz-Energo would convene AGMs to approve dividend payments. On September 15, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine put forward a draft of the 2009 state budget to parliament, which imposes, inter alia, a penalty for Ukrnafta and Ukrgaz-Energo, if the companies do not distribute their 2006-2008 profits by September 1, 2009 (for more details, see our news commentary from September 16). Ukrnafta’s accumulated net income for 2007-2008 is USD 722.9 mln. We assume that Ukrnafta will distribute 100% of accumulated net income for 2006-2007 in dividends, therefore DPS is USD 13.3, dividend yield is 72.4%.