Shareholders who represent at least 5 per cent of the shares may demand that an ExtraordinaryGeneral Meeting be held to deal with a specific matter pursuant to Section 5–7 of the Norwegian Public Limited Companies Act.
The General Meeting shall normally be held by June 1, each year. Notice of the General Meeting shall be sent to all the shareholders with a known address and will be published on Atea ASA’s website at least 21 days prior to the date of the Annual General Meeting. The recommendation from the Nominating Committee is also published on the website.
Pursuant to Article 9 of the company’s Articles of Association the right to participate in and vote at the General Meeting may only be exercised when acquisition of shares have been recorded in the company’s shareholder register (VPS) the fifth weekday prior to the General Meeting being held. Shareholders that wish to participate in the General Meeting (personally or through proxy) must, pursuant to Article 10 of the Articles of Association, notify the company within a deadline that will be provided in the summons and which shall be no less than 5 days prior to the date on which the General Meeting is held. Shareholders may provide their votes in writing or electronically, although no later than two days in advance of the General Meeting. The summons will provide further details of how votes may be provided.
Registration is made in writing by letter or fax, or through the Internet. Importance is attached to the case documents containing adequate details, so that the shareholders can make a decision on the matters that are to be discussed, and setting the registration deadline as close as practically possible to the actual meeting. The agenda is set by the Board of Directors, and the main items normally include: Report by the President and CEO, app-roval of the annual report and accounts, election of members to the Board of Directors and the Nominating Committee, potentially new election of an auditor, as well as adoption of remuneration to the auditor and Board of Directors. As a minimum, the Board Chairman, a representative from the Nominating Committee, the auditor, the President and CEO, and the Chief Financial Officer will participate at the General Meeting. The General Meeting is chaired by an independent chairperson. In 2010 the Annual General Meeting was held on April 29, and 52.34 per cent of the total share capital was represented.