Austria's top economic news - April 13

Verbund, Austria's largest utility, will continue focusing on renewable energy in the future, CEO Wolfgang Anzengruber said at the company's shareholders' meeting. During the meeting, opponents to imports of electricity generated by nuclear power plants demonstrated in front of Austria Center where Verbund's shareholders met. Verbund's power generation activities are mainly concentrated on hydropower. The shareholders voted in favour of a cut in dividend to EUR 0.55 per share for 2010 from EUR 1.25 last year. For 2011 the CEO expects stable results for Verbund, including a slight improvement in net and operating profit. 
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Builder Strabag said it has fully taken over German hydraulic engineering company Ludwig Voss. The acquired company generates annual revenues of about EUR 20m. The purchase price remained undisclosed.
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Russian Sberbank said it was in talks for buying stakes in Austrian banks. The bank did not disclose concrete names but it is no secret that it is interested in VBI, the eastern European holding of OeVAG.
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Aluminium group AMAG, which launched IPO last week, said after the move CP Group 3 B.V. holds 34.1% in it. Raiffeisenlandesbank Oberösterreich controls 11.5% and Oberbank owns 5%. The company's employee foundation holds 11.1% and the remainder is in free float.
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The executive board of Raiffeisen International Bank (RBI) has received a total payment of EUR 8.2m for 2010, up 178% in annual terms.
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Real estate company Sparkassen Immobilien AG (s Immo) said its gross revenues grew to EUR 174.9m for 2010, from EUR 153.6m for 2009. s Immo returned to an EBIT of EUR 60.5m, after a loss of EUR 53.1m. The net profit came in at EUR 1.8m, compared to a loss of EUR 78.6m. The company sees a clear recovery in 2011 as well as considerable growth in the results in 2012/13.
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Abu Dhabi's investment company IPIC may raise its 20% stake in OMV by the end of the year, managing director Khadem Qubaisi told Reuters. The company also does not exclude taking the 36% stake of OMV in plastics maker Borealis. OMV however denied current talks with IPIC on the matter.