Teesside chemicals giant Venator has come under fire from one of its major shareholders in a searing open letter that accuses the firm of being among the worst performing in its sector.
Prague-based investor J&T MS 1 SICAV - which owns about 14.3% of the pigments producer - has blamed Venator's board for a steep decline in the firm's share price since it launched on the New York Stock Exchange in summer 2017. Venator, which has headquarters at Wynyard and reported losses of £56.6m in 2021, has defended itself, saying it faced a number of headwinds include cost inflation and wider economic uncertainty and pointed to a number of actions it has taken in response, including a £41m ($50m) cost reduction plan.
J&T's letter says: "We are writing to express our serious concerns about the direction the company has taken under the watch of the current board of directors, and to reiterate our belief that additional independent shareholder representation is urgently needed in the boardroom. To be clear, J&T is not an 'activist' fund, and we generally do not go public with our concerns about a company.
