beach to call egm

A SHAREHOLDER action group seems to have succeeded, for now at least, in its fight to retain Ray Shaw as managing director of Great Artesian Oil & Gas.
Dr Shaw was to step down on December 31 after 19.9 per cent shareholder Beach Petroleum indicated it would not support him beyond that date.
Dr Shaw had agreed to step down as managing director from December 31 as part of a share-sale agreement with Beach executed in June, which paid him and two other directors $14.5 million for a portion of their shares at 50c apiece.
Two Beach directors, including one who has now resigned from the Beach board, and two independent directors then joined the board. This new board, which had the discretion to reappoint Dr Shaw as managing director, decided not to do so last week.
However, that board resigned en masse yesterday in the face of a possible shareholder revolt led by major shareholder Greg Plummer.
It was replaced with nominees of the so-called Great Artesian Shareholder Group (GAS Group), lawyer Peter Hopkins and chartered accountant Robert Pullan.
However, Beach intends to use its stake to convene an extraordinary general meeting at which managing director Reg Nelson says Beach will put its side of the story. Mr Plummer had alleged, among other things, that Beach was trying to reduce the Great Artesian share price ahead of a full takeover bid.
Mr Nelson said Beach had reserved its rights regarding various allegations and was considering its response. He said it appeared Dr Shaw was trying to have his cake and eat it too and he was disappointed in his conduct.
Mr Nelson said Dr Shaw was allowed to remain in his position until the end of the year so he could exercise some employee options.
``To put it in context, Beach is a $1.2 billion company,'' Mr Nelson said yesterday. ``We've just completed a $600 million transaction in the past few months.
``Why would we be wasting our valuable time and resources in trying to interfere in the management of a $60 million company?''
Mr Hopkins said in a statement released to the media yesterday the new board had resolved to immediately discuss Dr Shaw's reappointment. He also said the new board would invite Beach to appoint a board representative ``who is acceptable to Great Artesian''.
Dr Shaw could not be contacted for comment yesterday.