Against the backdrop of the spreading COVID-19 (Coronavirus) and the current rules prohibiting attendance at large meetings, the Board of Management of E.ON SE has decided to postpone the Annual Shareholders Meeting scheduled for May 13, 2020, until mid-June. The exact date will be announced at a later date.
The postponement of the Annual Shareholders Meeting will also lead to a postponed payment of the proposed dividend of €0.46 per share.
Unlikely situation
E.ON expressly supports the German government's corresponding considerations
In view of the previously unlikely situation, E.ON expressly supports the German government's corresponding considerations, the proposals of the Deutsche Aktieninstitut and many German listed companies to simplify the rules for holding shareholders' meetings.
These include, first and foremost, the admission of online Shareholders Meetings without a mandatory attendance requirement as well as the simplified option of an advance payment dividend without a resolution by the Shareholders Meeting.
Other European countries such as Spain, France and Switzerland have already reacted and introduced such regulations for their companies. We call on the German government to also react quickly and unbureaucratically.
The economic impact
Such regulations would help to mitigate the economic impact of the current situation so that shareholders can safely exercise their voting rights despite the existing prohibitions on meetings.
In particular, the approval of dividends is relevant to the income of many pension funds, but dividends are also part of the retirement provisions of many citizens.