In late April, Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich signed a Directive to state representatives in the Board of Directors of “Rosneftegaz” on dividends of the company for the year 2015, reported his press Secretary. According to her, Rosneftegaz will have to pay at least 50% of the net profit for last year. The decision was unexpected, because on April 4, President Vladimir Putin has agreed with the request of the President of “Rosneft” and Chairman of the Board of Directors of “Rosneftegaz” Igor Sechin that Rosneftegaz should pay 25%. On the request of Sechin and Putin’s decision was reported by “Interfax”, a copy of the letter of the President of “Rosneft” with the resolution of the head of state.
As it turned out , despite the Directive, the dividends of “Rosneftegaz” will not actually be 50% or even 25% of net profit, but less.
Minus deposits
April 22, Deputy Director of the Department of economic development Alexander Vasil said in a letter (a copy is in , confirmed by the representative of the Ministry of economic development) in the Ministry of Finance that Rosneftegaz proposes to adjust its profit on “paper” articles and the government supported this proposal. Without adjustment, the profit of Rosneftegaz by the end of 2015 amounted to 149,36 bn, after adjustments 72.1 billion rubles, said in the letter.
The Directive Dvorkovich (also have) indicated that members States must ensure the payment of “Rosneftegaz” 36 billion rubles of dividends. It turns out that the company will pay 24% of net income and 50% adjusted.
From the letter Vasilchenko follows that 77.3 billion rubles, which “Rosneftegaz” was allowed to adjust the profit is income from the revaluation of deposits and 27.6% of shares of “inter RAO UES”, which owns the company. Most of the accounts on the revaluation of foreign currency deposits — 66.8 bn Earn “Rosneftegaz” failed due to the weakened ruble: for 2015, the official exchange rate to the dollar increased by more than RUB 16, from 56.3 RUB 31 December 2014 to 72.9 RUB 31 December 2015. Sechin in the letter to Putin reported that in the accounts of “Rosneftegaz” are $4.9 billion received from BP for 5.66% of Rosneft shares in 2013.
The acting Director General of “Rosneftegaz” and the Vice-President “Rosneft” Larissa Calanda, answering a question , said that has not yet received the Directive and therefore does not comment on the amount of dividends of “Rosneftegaz”. According to her, the method of calculation of profits and losses of state-owned companies for payment of dividends approved by the Federal property management Agency and Rosneftegaz guided by it. Calanda has confirmed that the company is really recommended to adjust the net profit on “paper” article, including the reassessment of income from deposits and other financial investments. “It’s foreign currency deposits, there is no cash flow, no cache, it’s paper profit,” she said.
A half-hearted solution
To adjust the profit on the revaluation of income from deposits and shares of the state company may by resolution of the government from 2012, according to which dividends may not be less than 25% of the profits. However, due to the difficult situation with the budget, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed on 18 April the decree that state-owned companies by the end of 2015 must pay at least 50%. The possibility of adjustment of profits on income from deposits is missing. It turns out that the Directive obliges Dvorkovich “Rosneftegaz” and other state-owned companies, to direct on dividends not less than 50%, but allows you to adjust the profit on outstanding article.
About his decision Dvorkovich has informed Putin in a letter dated 29 April (have). He also said that Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev is aware of the situation. According to a representative of Dvorkovich, the Deputy Prime Minister was guided by the Medvedev decree of 18 April, which was later Putin’s instructions on 25%. However, she did not explain why “Rosneftegaz” was allowed to adjust the profit.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Natalia Timakova said that the decision on the dividends of “Rosneftegaz” and was agreed by Medvedev and Putin. The President’s press Secretary Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Putin’s work correspondence.
According to the officer of the government, Sechin is still dissatisfied with the decision of the government. The company wanted to pay 18 billion rubles — 25% of adjusted net profit, or 12.1% excluding the adjustments.
Russian companies often resort to the net profit adjustments for non-cash items for the purpose of calculation of dividends, the Director of the division of corporations of the international rating Agency Fitch in London Dmitry marinchenko. According to him, this is due to the volatility of the exchange rate: net income may differ significantly from adjusted because of the revaluation of deposits or foreign currency debt. Such adjustments do not violate the principles of reporting, he adds.
But not all market participants do. For example, “Surgutneftegas”, whose huge dollar deposits (over us $33 billion), including the income from their revaluation in the calculation of net profit for payment of dividends. In 2014 he earned due to exchange rate differences 845,9 billion rubles, its net profit grew by 3.5 times, to 891,68 billion rubles. as a result, the company paid a record dividend of 63.23 billion rubles for preferred shares (under the Charter, it sends about 7% of net income on payments “preferred shares”) and to 23.22 billion RUB in ordinary (there is no reference to profit). In total 86,45 billion rubles, twice more than the year before.
The representatives of the other largest state companies — “Gazprom”, “Transneft” FSK and “RusGidro” — did not comment on whether they intend to adjust the profit for calculating dividends, and how. Important for investors is single and a long-term approach of the state towards the dividends of state companies, notes the portfolio Manager “Raiffeisen Capital” Anton Kravchenko. According to him, a single decision on high dividends too increase the attractiveness of shares in Russian state companies.
Why “Rosneftegaz” money
“Rosneftegaz” in addition to the shares of “inter RAO UES” owns 69.5% of Rosneft and 10,97%, “Gazprom”. The dividends from participation in capital of the two state-owned companies — the main source of income “Rosneftegaz”. Compared to 2014, the company’s profit fell by 45 billion rubles.
Remaining after paying dividends of “Rosneftegaz” will direct on the decision of the state tasks and the implementation of the directives of the President, said Calanda . Among them, the project energy security of the Kaliningrad region, said a press release of “Rosneftegaz” on April 29. The company has indicated that successfully solves the state problems in the fuel and Energy sector at the expense of dividends, for example, acquired on the market in 2013, a 0.23% stake in Gazprom that the state has provided formal control in monopoly. Also part of the funds was spent on the increase in the interests of the state share in the Caspian pipeline consortium. According to Rosneftegaz, high dividends can lead to non-fulfillment of the decrees Putin, so the company advised the government to take more dividends with other state-owned companies.
If “Rosneftegaz” is not to adjust the profit, it would pay to 74.7 billion rubles of dividends. When adjusting only on the income from revaluation of shares of “inter RAO” dividends would be accounted for 69.4 billion rubles, it Turns out that the Finance Ministry will not receive the 33.4 38.7 billion rubles. It is, for example, three times more Federal spending on the development programme for the North Caucasus this year.
