You are correct, it's a complete rort, but it happens with all small cap mining companies on the ASX.
I believe they sat back on their laurels, banked on SSW as a JV partner, with no plan B, and were blind-sided by the SSW withdrawal, which largely occurred because the SSW founder was encouraged into retirement and the new management were not as optimistic with the INR figures and preferred instead to get a loan for over a billion (AUD) for their Scandinavian lithium mine.
The share price topped at 31 cents recently, now back at less than 10 cents.
I've often thought that performance bonuses are a rort, it's almost always born out to be absolutely true.
I think the rewarding of these should involve some sort of multi-factorial analysis, which we (and perhaps the government) could leave up to the university statisticians to create and then have it passed into law.
Two of the obvious factors involved would be the share price and the market cap, but obviously there would potentially be a number of other important factors, all deliberately weighted as appropriate.
At the moment though, performance bonuses are simply gifts for the time directors spend in the job, whether they do anything or not while they are there.
The calculations on this batch of bonuses means that the directors have been each given for free, shares to approximately the value of $260,000 - a nice little bonus for nothing really, on top of all the other company benefits and freebies, and the salary and superannuation and other company gifts and claimed expenses.
It's why everyone clambers to become a company director, especially in the small cap mining space. Ironically they are all living in mansions along the river amongst the leafy wealthy suburbs - pretty much always purchased via your shareholder gifts (i.e your investments). We have given them money for their mansions and Mercedes, but unfortunately do not get to own any part of it. What nice people we are.
Nothing will be done about these rorts though, nothing ever is, except perhaps the occasional cursory comment.
Gw
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