Keith Meister, who runs hedge fund Corvex Management LP and who had previously been on the board of Williams Cos. Inc., said on Aug. 22 that he planned to nominate candidates to replace the entire board of Williams Cos. Meister first announced his plans in an interview on CNBC on Aug. 22.
A Williams spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
Meister said his 10 nominees to the pipeline company's board would all be Corvex employees who would be replaced by independent directors shortly after taking their positions. Meister said he planned to release the names on his slate before Williams' deadline for nominating directors, which is Aug. 25.
Corvex is Williams' fourth-largest shareholder. Corvex and another top shareholder, Soroban Capital Partners, previously held board seats and have agitated for change at the company for years. The two hedge funds were key proponents of Williams' failed deal to be bought out by rival Energy Transfer Equity LP.
After the takeover deal collapsed in June, nearly half of Williams' board, including Meister and Soroban's Eric Mandelblatt, resigned following a failed attempt to oust CEO Alan Armstrong.
Meister said he had worked unsuccessfully to convince the company to adopt a plan to place a majority of new independent directors on the board by May 2018. He was also unhappy with reports that the company had not engaged with rival Enterprise Products Partners LP when the larger pipeline company approached Williams with a potential takeover bid earlier this summer.
Shares of Williams were down 2 cents at $27.66 in afternoon trading on Aug. 22.
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