RIYADH: UAE-based natural gas firm Dana Gas got its shareholders’ approval to pay out 315 million dirhams ($86 million) in half-year dividends. The company will distribute 4.5 fils per share for the second half of 2021, bringing the total annual dividend to 8 fils, it said in a statement. Dana Gas hiked its dividend payout by 45 percent on the year, after it turned 1.4 billion dirhams of losses in 2020 into profits of 1.2 billion dirhams during 2021. The bumper earnings and dividends were driven by “careful management of costs and continued operational excellence against a backdrop of higher global energy prices,” Hamid Jafar, chairman of the board of directors, said. “Through 2022 we will continue to focus on our long-term growth strategy, and anticipate positive financial results in an environment of continued high energy prices,” he added.