TNT Express feud with shareholders widens Dutch express mail company TNT Express has broken into open feud with a group of activist shareholders, rejecting their request to appoint three new directors and accusing them of paying the proposed directors themselves. The rejection marked a new level of acrimony in a long-running battle between TNT Express management and a shareholder group led by American hedge fund Jana Partners. Jana asked TNT Express in December to appoint three new members to the board of directors, including Alan Jones, who headed the express service from 1999-2003 when it was a division of the former TNT. TNT Express not only rejected the proposed candidates, but announced its board of directors had appointed two new members of its own, both drawn from the Dutch corporate world. In a letter rejecting the proposal, TNT Express said the current board "has rejected the nomination of these candidates as they do not meet the requirements of independence as laid down in the company's legal and governance rules." A spokesperson for TNT Express clarified that it believed that Jana Partners was offering compensation to Mr Jones and the other two candidates, former Avis executive David Siegel and former UPS mergers and acquisitions head Thomas Delbrook. The company said its legal obligations precluded seating board members being paid by third parties. Jana Partners, which together with Alberta Investment Partners (AIMCO) owns a 5 per cent stake of TNT Express, was the driving force behind a shareholder revolt that led to the break-up of the former TNT into TNT Express and Dutch postal company PostNL last May. With other shareholders, it is now pressing for TNT Express to be groomed for a takeover by a larger sector-mate, such as UPS or FedEx. Jana and its allies are unhappy with the performance of Marie-Christine Lombard, chief executive. Shares in TNT Express have fallen by a third since the demerger as sales have been hit by the downturn in Europe, declines in volume on Asia-Europe routes, and problems at the company's Brazilian division. But PostNL, which retains a 29.9 per cent stake in its sister company, has been ambivalent. Piet Klaver, chairman of PostNL's board, has said Mrs Lombard needs to be given the time to execute her strategic plans. PostNL's chief executive, Harry Koorstra, is widely believed to be more sympathetic to Jana's proposals. Jana has previously stated that if TNT Express rejects the proposal to add its three board members, it will put it directly to shareholders at the company's general meeting in April. TNT Express said it would propose Marcel Smits, chief executive of Sara Lee Corporation, and Sjoerd van Keulen, chairman of the Holland Financial Centre, as candidates for the board at the shareholders" meeting in April. TNT shares were up 0.34 per cent to €6.25 in morning trading on the Amsterdam exchange, against a drop of 0.8 per cent in the AEX index of shares.