Firstly, let me say I have every confidence in the Board and...

Firstly, let me say I have every confidence in the Board and management.  They are doing a great job, but that doesn’t justify large numbers of options being handed out at very low performance hurdles – which are likely to be met on recovery of the oil price without any effort on the part of the option holders.

The Chairman argues it is hard to get the balance right between salary and incentives.  That is just an easy way to justify issuing options with low hurdles.  The benefits from options need to be clearly at risk and if possible tied to benefits to shareholders flowing from actions of the option holders.

I have no fundamental objection to options being issued as a potential way of rewarding those doing the hard yards to achieve results, but there are limits, and the current proposals have breached those limits.
There are a number of ways that the concerns of shareholders could be put to rest, partially or in full:

1. For the Chairman to announce at the AGM that in light of the significant concerns expressed by shareholders, that the options resolutions are withdrawn and that further consideration deferred until the next AGM. (I would be very happy to lead the applause).
2. For the Chairman to announce a revised performance test – say, an exercise price of 50c (recognising that the price of oil will recover and that the share price is being manipulated).
3. For the Chairman to announce that any existing and unexercised options lapse on the granting of new options.
4. For the Chairman to announce the withdrawal of resolutions granting options to those who have previously been granted options.

If the Board decide it’s time to do the right thing and admit that they should not be bulldozing this through because they can, then they earn my respect and I’m sure the respect of many other shareholders.