Gulf Marine Services (GMS) has rejected calls from former suitor Seafox International to allow voting for two of its chosen board members.
GMS said Seafox had written on June 2 asking for the appointment of Hassan Heikal and Hesham Halbouny to the board of GMS. The GMS board denied the request.
Seafox, in a statement on June 11, said it wanted a vote at the AGM on the election of its two nominees to the board. Each of the current board members should also be up for re-election, it said.
GMS should hold a vote at its upcoming AGM, Seafox said, rather than holding a new meeting for the vote.
The suggestion was rejected. Once the resolutions were issued on May 29, company law forbids such a move, GMS said. This is when the notice for the AGM was published.
The AGM is scheduled to be held on June 30. GMS said the deadline for issuing a new notice for the AGM had passed.
The Seafox notice was invalid, GMS continued, with some of the resolutions it has proposed “ineffective”.
GMS rejected a bid from Seafox in late April. Seafox abandoned its bid on May 28 as GMS’ other major shareholders voiced support for the company in its current form.
Seafox has been increasing its stake in GMS. At the end of May, it held a 20.81% stake in GMS.
Heikal and Halbouny are directors of Seafox. Halbouny is also a partner in Man Capital, the investment arm of the Mansour Group.
On the up
GMS has recently reached a deal to restructure its debt, which settles some of the concerns expressed about its future. As part of its deal with its banks, the company plans to carry out an equity raise this year.
The company has also struck a deal with another local company in the Middle East, Zakher Marine International, on potential co-operation.