EasyJet board looks set to win latest battle with Stelios

By Sarah Young

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - EasyJet's board looks
poised to win a shareholder vote on Friday and deal a blow to
its founder and long-term critic over the British low-cost
airline's plan to stick with a $5.5 billion plane order.

Stelios Haji-Ioannou, whose family is easyJet's biggest
investor with a 34% stake, wants to oust the CEO, finance chief,
chairman and another director, arguing their plan for the
airline to buy 107 new Airbus aircraft could bankrupt it.

Three of the company's bigger investors, with a combined 15%
stake, have backed Chief Executive Johan Lundgren, and he says
he has spoken to about 45% of the shareholder base who have all
given him their support.

The resolutions put forward by Haji-Ioannou need the backing
of 50% plus one share of the votes.

Lundgren said the company line was also endorsed by three
shareholder advisory bodies. "This .. underscores the strength
of the actions taken to date by the board and management to
safeguard the financial and operational stability of the
airline," he said this month.

The preliminary outcome of the vote will be announced during
the virtual shareholder meeting which starts on Friday at 0900
GMT, with the final result expected later in the day.

Haji-Ioannou has argued for a decade that easyJet's fleet
expansion destroys shareholder value. After the coronavirus
outbreak grounded planes, he stepped up his battle, arguing the
latest order does not make sense during a downturn.

EasyJet has said it has sufficient liquidity for a prolonged
grounding during the pandemic. It has deferred the order of 24
of the new Airbus planes, and said the contract is
vital as older aircraft need replacing.

Haji-Ioannou has gone so far as to offer a 5 million pound
($6.1 million) reward to anyone with information that could lead
to the cancellation of the order.

Having founded easyJet in 1995, Haji-Ioannou quit the board
in 2010 and voted against buying new planes in 2013. In 2012,
his attempt to remove previous chairman Mike Rake failed.
($1 = 0.8176 pounds)
(Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Mark Potter)