Leo de Bever, the head of Alberta Investment Management Co.Tory Zimmerman
Following up on an earlier Streetwise post that you can read here, Viterra Inc. has issued a statement saying that its board's nominating and corporate governance committee is taking AIMCo's announcement "under consideration."
For his part, AIMCo CEO Leo de Bever says the pension fund manager's decision to take the activist route wasn't made lightly. AIMCo had been pressing the company for 18 months before going public, he notes.
Mr. de Bever said he has told the company's chairman, Thomas Birks, that "it's the only company we invest in where people I don't even know have walked up to me and said 'how long is it going to take you guys to do something about this?'"
AIMCo wants to see directors put on the board who have expertise in international finance and valuations, as well as the global agricultural industry, so that they can help the company make acquisitions.
Mr. de Bever said he's already heard from one other institutional investor who agrees with what AIMCo is doing and he suspects that the support will be broad.