Dana shareholders to vote on sukuk restructuring

Shareholders of Dana Gas , the Abu Dhabi-listed energy firm, will vote on March 14 to approve a restructuring plan for its US$920m sukuk after failing to meet maturity of the Islamic bond last year.

Dana became the first company in UAE to miss repayment of a maturing bond on October 31 but agreed new terms with a creditor committee representing bondholders, which included investment firms Ashmore Group and BlackRock, a week later.

The company has been hamstrung by payment delays on gas it supplied to Egypt and Iraq's Kurdistan region. In early December, Dana's outstanding receivables amounted to US$220m and US$350m respectively, according to a company statement at the time.

Under the plan, the Sharjah-based company will repay US$70m in cash, with the remaining US$850m split equally between two new five-year sukuk - an ordinary Islamic bond and a convertible sukuk - which pay an average coupon of 8 percent.

Crescent Petroleum, the largest shareholder in Dana with a 20 percent stake, will back the restructuring plan, its CEO told Reuters in January.

Dana posted a 20 percent rise in 2012 net profit on the back of higher oil prices and lower costs, it said earlier this month.