TMK may raise 2011 dividend by 218%

The board of directors of TMK, Russia's largest producer of steel pipes for the energy sector, has recommended its annual shareholder meeting, scheduled for June 26, to vote to pay dividends for 2011 at 2.70 rubles ($0.086) per share, a 218 percent increase year-on-year, the company said in a statement on Friday. The overall volume of payments for last year may stand at 2.531 billion rubles ($80.6 million). The funds are scheduled to be paid by August 24, 2012. TMK is Russia's largest manufacturer and exporter of steel pipes and ranks among the global top three pipe producers. TMK GDRs and ordinary shares are traded on the London Stock Exchange.