5 questions at 2023 Allkem AGM
November 8, 2023
Here is the text of the 5 written questions submitted at the 2023 Allkem hybrid AGM held on November 8. All of them were needlessly censored and cut back by the question wrangler. See video grabs and summaries of the answers below. There were big protest votes which should have been disclosed earlier. It was also bizarre that we rushed through formal business and then had lengthy addresses from the chair and CEO after the meeting had been formally closed. There were only 2 further questions after that.
Q1. You have released the 2023 Sustainability Report today and last year you released it one day before the AGM. Please explain why it isn't released earlier so shareholders have more time to contemplate it in deciding whether to support the re-election of directors. When will Allkem follow the lead of other resources companies such as Rio Tinto and Woodside and put up a non-binding resolution on its climate targets and sustainability? Given lithium is climate friendly, why not just put the next year's sustainability report up for non-binding approval at the 2024 AGM?
Answer: chair Peter Coleman said they were too busy to do it earlier and the bit about a non-binding vote was edited out by the officious question wrangler - watch video of edited exchange via Twitter.
Q2. In light of the share price plunging from a record high of more than $16 in July to a 20-month low of almost $9 this week, could the CEO comment on this impact on his current incentive arrangements and also summarise his past LTI grants as to whether they have vested or lapsed. Please don't say look it up in the annual report and through ASX announcements. It's complicated and the CEO could factually summarise the situation in 60 seconds.
Answer: the CEO didn't answer because the question wrangler removed the bit directing the question at him. Chair Coleman claimed the recent share price rout is overdone. This is kind of irrelevant because the Argentinian CEO Martine is exiting after the merger. Watch video of edited exchange via Twitter.
Q3. Thank you for disclosing that 1364 of our circa 50,000 shareholders lodged proxies on the remuneration report. When disclosing the outcome of voting on all resolutions today, including this rem report, could you please advise the ASX how many shareholders voted for and against each item, similar to what happens with a scheme of arrangement? This will provide a better gauge of retail shareholder sentiment on all resolutions and was a disclosure initiative adopted recently by the ASX and by Qantas on Friday. Also, what were the issues that drove the 11% protest vote?
Answer: the proxies were flashed up too late so it was hard to ask questions on the protests and the chair just waffled about market practice re voting disclosure after the question wrangler butchered what was submitted in writing - watch video of edited exchange via Twitter.
Q4. Why is only one director up for election this year and how did we determine which of our directors will serve on the merged board? Does Florencia agree that the proposed 12 person board is too large and clunky and that this would ideally fall over time?
Answer: the bit asking Florencia to respond was edited out. She gave a good campaign speech and it was only after the debate that the proxies were flashed up and chair Coleman explained that she suffered a 25% protest vote because of related party transactions given her Argentinian law firm does lots of work for Allkem. In other words, she's not independent, so why is she one of these 6 directors put up by Allkem for the 12 person board after the Livent merger? Watch video of edited exchange via Twitter.
Q5. Gina Rinehart spent $1.2 billion blocking the Liontown takeover and is currently down almost $500 million on paper. Could the chair and CEO comment as to what is motivating Australia's richest person and have we had any discussion with the Rinehart camp? Is there a risk she will do the same to us as she did to Liontown, taking a patriotic perspective on mining companies primarily listed in Australia and buying a 20% stake in our company on market?
Answer: once question, the questions was cut back and censored but chair Coleman gently weighed in without commenting on Gina's motivations. Watch video of edited exchange via Twitter.
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