Dissenters seek new board for Ursa Major

Shareholders of Ursa Major Minerals are seeking to replace current board members due to a lagging performance on the TSX.

In a news release, merchant bank Forbes & Manhattan Inc. and Inspiration Mining Corporation, Ursa Major's largest shareholder, said they are circulating a form of proxy in a bid for support to elect a new board of directors at the junior miner's June 23 annual general meeting.

George Faught, chief operating officer of Forbes & Manhattan, noted that Ursa Major's share price has fallen more than 92 per cent over the last seven years, while the Capped Diversified Metals and Mining Index on the TSX has increased more than 523 per cent over the same period.

“Following our discussions over the past year with the current directors and management of Ursa Major, we do not have confidence in their ability to increase shareholder value,” Faught said in the release. “The election of a new board of directors is a necessary first step to increasing shareholder value.”

Forbes and Inspiration claim that the current directors “are not taking the important operational steps required to improve operating efficiency and enhance profitability of Ursa Major, nor do they have the desire or the experience to make these necessary changes,” according to the release.

Other claims include that the board lacks a growth strategy for the company, the directors have been unable to leverage capital to build value and drive share prices, and limited investment by the directors “demonstrates a fundamental lack of confidence in their own ability to build shareholder value.”

Preliminary suggestions of the sale of Ursa Major are premature, the release continues.

Amongst other projects, Ursa Major operates the Shakespeare nickel-copper mine, located 70 km west of Sudbury near the village of Webbwood.