The Australian 12th January 12, 2011Molopo directors to fight...

The Australian 12th January 12, 2011

Molopo directors to fight dissident punters

DIRECTORS of junior oil and gas company Molopo Energy will fight a push by a group of shareholders to overthrow the board.

The group is led by property developer Max Beck and pokies king Bruce Mathieson,
Molopo revealed yesterday that it would hold a general meeting of shareholders on February 15 to consider resolutions to elect Mr Beck and former Shell executive Greg Lewin to the board. They are seeking to replace chairman Donald Beard and non-executive director Bruce Hobday.

Mr Beck said in a statement yesterday that a reinvigorated board would bring a renewed focus to transforming Molopo from a "resource accumulator" to a company focused on prioritising developments and maximising shareholder value.

"We have spoken with many Molopo shareholders and encourage all shareholders to have their say by participating in the voting process," Mr Beck said.

He said the strategic failures of the board and the company's poor implementation record had contributed to the underperformance of Molopo's share price.

Shares fell to a 21-month low last month and yesterday fell 1.5 per cent to $1.

But Mr Beard hit back, saying he had been unfairly presented with an ultimatum by Mr Beck at a meeting on December 15 that he and Dr Hobday step down within 48 hours.

"They have offered no plans on how they are going to fix things other than putting two people on the board who don't know how this business is run" he said yesterday. "To me that is perplexing."

He said the biggest mistake, should they replace Dr Hobday and himself with their two nominees, was that there would be no one on the board with the technical experience to question management.

The group's leading shareholders include Wilson HTM and the Myer Family, both of which Mr Beard said supported the board's position.

The Beck-led group, backed by Fairfax Media and Reserve Bank of Australia board member and Molopo shareholder, Roger Corbett, holds a 6.75 per cent stake.

Molopo plans to spin off some of its unconventional Canadian oil assets through an initial public offering on the Toronto Stock Exchange this quarter. The raising is expected to be worth about $200 million.

The company said yesterday that despite the requisition for an extraordinary general meeting, it would proceed with the listing extra value for shareholders".