Changes afoot at Dorchester Pacific

It could be all change at Dorchester Pacific next month, with three renowned businessmen attempting to force their way on to the finance company's board.

Shareholders' Association chairman Bruce Sheppard, one-time Dorchester managing director Brent King and Rod Petricevic, managing director of 20 per cent Dorchester shareholder Bridgecorp, are all looking for seats on the board, the Dominion Post reported today.

Whereas it will be the first time Mr Sheppard has tried to get on to a listed company's board, Mr Petricevic was on the board of Euro-National Corporation, a company that went from sharemarket darling to recording a $255 million loss in the 1980s.

Despite Dorchester's solid finances, it appears to have been beset by boardroom wrangles since Bridgecorp acquired its holding in 2004.

In last year's meeting, chairman Murray Radford and long-serving director Sir William Birch were both voted off the board.

It is understood property multimillionaire Hugh Green, who controls about 20 per cent of Dorchester and has a representative on the board, and Bridgecorp voted against the pair.

Bridgecorp had failed in earlier efforts to get a director appointed to the board.

Dorchester's AGM takes place on August 23.

At 10.30am, shares in the finance company were trading at a year low of 185c, after hitting a high of 260c over the year.

- NZPA