Alaska Beat

Arctic Slope shareholders' annual dividend tops $5,000

The average Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC) shareholder will receive a fall dividend of $3,431, said a press release from the regional Native corporation.

ASRC, representing about 11,000 Inupiat shareholders from the North Slope region, has distributed about $542.5 million since its incorporation four decades ago. Direct deposits and checks should hit bank accounts and mail boxes in early December.

In the press release, ASRC chief executive Rex A. Rock, Sr. said the dividend was a "bit lower" than last year's fall dividend. That was expected, he noted. Part of the problem stems from "the impact of declining North Slope oil production and other operational challenges," he said.

The average shareholder owns 100 shares of stock in the Native corporation, created in the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Those shareholders took home $1,653 in the spring, a 33 percent increase from the spring dividend handed out in 2010.

The total payout to shareholders for the year: $5,084. The corporation has collected $2.33 billion in revenues this year with $164 million in net income.

Alex DeMarban

Alex DeMarban is a longtime Alaska journalist who covers business, the oil and gas industries and general assignments. Reach him at 907-257-4317 or alex@adn.com.

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