UPDATE2: Russian official wants state cos to pay 50% of profit in divs

(Adds comments by RusHydro, background in last three paragraphs)

MOSCOW, Feb 2 (PRIME) -- Russia’s Federal State Property Management Agency has proposed increasing dividends of state companies to 50% of net profit already for 2015, Director Olga Dergunova told reporters Tuesday.

“We are talking about all state companies. The Federal State Property Management Agency has proposed increasing the maximum threshold of dividends to 50%. This is our proposal, a decision has not been made yet,” she said. She also said it was early to say if the rate will apply to profit under Russian Accounting Standards (RAS) or International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

At present, state companies should allocate 25% of net profit for dividends.

The Russian budget may receive additional 110 billion rubles in 2016 from state companies increasing their dividend payments to over 25% of net profit, Dergunova also said.

A spokesperson for hydropower giant RusHydro said the increase of dividends could negatively affect the company’s financial stability. The company’s dividend policy implies allocating at least 5% of IFRS net profit for dividends, while the upper limit is not provided.

“At the same time it is necessary to take into consideration that 2016 is the peak of financing of RusHydro’s investment program, and moreover the issue of refinancing RAO ES Vostoka’s debt has not been solved, that’s why a payment of excessive dividends may negatively affect the group’s financial solvency,” the spokesperson said.

RusHydro paid 6.033 billion rubles, or around 25% of its IFRS net profit, in dividends for 2014.

(76.3264 rubles – U.S. $1)

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