Dof shareholders have approved an 80% decrease to the company's share capital, which will allow the group to proceed with a proposed equity raise that will be used to rescue Dof Subsea.
The move will reduce Dof's share capital from NOK 1.5bn ($162.6m) to NOK 300.9m, the Oslo-listed company said in a filing on Wednesday.
This will be done by reducing the nominal value of the shares by from NOK 5 to NOK 1.
Some 34 shareholders voted to greenlight the move at an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) held today in Storebo, Norway.
Ahead of the meeting, Dof said it was proposing the decrease because its shares are trading at a price "significantly" below their nominal value.
Norwegian securities laws prevent Dof from issuing new shares at a price below the nominal value, which means the company must decrease its share capital in order to raise further equity in the future.
The decrease will be implemented immediately after the creditor notice period expires, Dof said today.
The EGM also elected Hans Olav Lindal as Frederik Wilhelm Mohn's replacement on Dof's board of directors.
Mohn left the board in September, two years after selling his interests in Dof and Dof Subsea.
Bigger picture
Meanwhile, the Dof group still remains at risk of breaching loan covenants with its lenders and is still working on long-term financial arrangements.
"Dof has for the PSV [platform supply vessel] and AHTS [anchor handler] business a constructive dialogue with its key banks to adjust the amortisation profile and covenant structure of its bank financing to reflect the current market environment," the group said in early October.
Dof said it was working on a proposed refinancing package that would "likely" include raising NOK 200m in new equity.
The company's largest indirect shareholder, Laco, which is owned and controlled by Dof's chairman Helge Mogster, has already said it will support the plan.
A "substantial portion" of the new shares will be used to support the refinancing of Dof Subsea, in which the group owns a 65% stake.
Last week, the subsea company agreed with bondholders to postpone a payment of its senior unsecured bonds by at least 17 days, which will be repaid on 8 November at the earliest.
