D1 Oils sees off Myerson challenge

The board of the biofuels company D1 Oils saw off an attempt by the activist investor Brian Myerson to engineer a coup when other shareholders voted down his plans to oust four directors.

Management said Mr Myerson's bid failed by a substantial majority and D1 would now negotiate with potential buyers. "The board would like to thank independent shareholders for their continued support," D1 said yesterday.

"We will continue to focus our energies on the running of the business while we continue discussions with potential offerors and conclude our strategic review."

Last week, the Takeover Panel banned Mr Myerson, who owns 27.5 per cent of D1 Oils, from participating in takeover dealings for three years. It found that he and two others had acted in concert when buying 6.7 million shares in Principle Capital Investment Trust in 2009. He called the ruling "wholly wrong and misguided".