Belgian oil tanker and storage operator Euronav said on Thursday its shareholders had elected John Fredriksen from Frontline, a major investor that pulled out of a merger deal with Euronav this year, to its supervisory board.
Euronav said shareholders had also approved the nomination to the supervisory board of Marc Saverys from CMB, the Belgian group's largest shareholder, which opposed the Frontline merger that would have created the world's largest publicly listed tanker company.
The vote on the composition of the group's supervisory board is key to defining its future strategy.
The Frontline and Euronav merger deal was terminated in January.
"I welcome the new directors and look forward to working with the enlarged Board to pursue our strategy of profitable growth and value-creation in the interest of all stakeholders," Euronav Supervisory Board Chairwoman Grace Reksten Skaugen said in a statement.
Shareholders also approved the appointments Cato H. Stonex, representing Frontline-aligned Famatown, and Patrick De Brabandere, representing CMB.
Norwegian-born billionaire investor Fredriksen was elected with 99.75% of votes at the meeting.
CMB and Fredriksen, which have built their Euronav stakes over the last year, get two board members each.
The new supervisory board will consist of seven members: three representatives from the former Euronav board, two representatives from CMB, and two representatives of Famatown, including Fredriksen.
Famatown belongs to Fredriksen who also is the biggest shareholder in Frontline.
Euronav's shares were up 2.9% at 14.57 GMT
(Reuters - Reporting by Diana Mandiá / Editing by Mark Potter and Jane Merriman)