OMV Owners Demand Change as Borealis Deal Brings Power Struggle - Bloomberg

OMV Owners Demand Change as Borealis Deal Brings Power Struggle - Bloomberg

OMV AG anchor investors are seeking further changes to its supervisory board to strengthen oversight of Chief Executive Officer Rainer Seele’s transformation plan, people familiar with the matter said.

A dispute about oversight and governance after OMV’s $4.7 billion purchase of chemicals producer Borealis AG has already triggered the ouster of the long-time Chairman Wolfgang Berndt. But the changes haven’t gone far enough to resolve the concerns of the company’s top shareholders, the Austrian government and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co., the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.

The upheaval at OMV is an important issue for Austria. It’s the country’s biggest industrial company and one of its few global players, securing thousands of well-paid jobs and contributing sizeable dividends to the federal budget. The growing rancor at the top threatens to undermine OMV’s plan to move beyond fossil fuels to become a producer of low-carbon energy and chemicals.

Investors want to replace some members of the supervisory board that have little experience in oil, gas or chemicals with industry specialists who can provide a more robust testing ground for Seele’s plans, the people said.