There might not be many AGMs in January but this leaves plenty of time to prepare for the flurry of April/May meetings for companies with December 31 balance dates.

But we’ll still be firing up for the odd meeting such as the gathering of Richmond Football Club members on January 25. Earlier that day there’ll be a meeting of creditors in Michael Schildberger’s failed Infosentials group which should be interesting.

If anyone in Canberra is interested, there is a special meeting of shareholders in Canbet, the gambling outfit chaired by that Labor connected chap Richard Farmer on January 30.

We’d love to find someone in Perth to go to the special meeting being held by Preston Resources, the company which has blown up about $300 million in the Bulong nickel project. They are effectively being taken over for a song with existing shareholders only left with about 5 per cent of the company. Poor old Barclays Bank of the UK have dropped many tens of millions on this baby.

Similarly, on February 2 there is a special meeting of shareholders in a Melbourne mineral sands outfit 37 per cent owned by South Africa’s Iscor Ltd. The jaapies want the local outfit to plough about $250 million into some colorful project in Africa which should make for an interesting debate.

On February 6 we’ll be in Sydney for the annual meeting of Lang Corp, the outfit which has made about 800 per cent since the ports dispute through its ownership of Patrick Stevedores.

With Chris Corrigan and Peter Scanlon both directors it should make for an interesting meeting. If anyone has any proxies we’d love to go.

On February 15 we’ll be going to the Axa Australasia AGM in Melbourne as a candidate for the board. As usual, the platform is for AXA to become a more activist fund manager rather than a typical passive insto that only ever votes with its feet.

The candidacy will obviously fail given that the French own 51 per cent but we’re determined to give as many fund managers as possible an opportunity to defend their passive investing in the face of someone contesting a board seat on an activist platform.

Companies with Dec 31 balance days

Now, here is the list of Dec 31 companies that we’ve worked up so far.

We’d love to here from the companies themselves to explain when and where the meetings are being held, but more importantly we’d love to hear from shareholders willing to appoint us as their proxy. Please also get in touch with any companies we’ve left off the list.

AMP

AP Eagars

Aristocrat

Austar

Australian Growth Properties

Australand

Axon Instruments

BAT Australasia

BMC Media

Bridgestone Australia

Caltex Australia

Capral Aluminium

Casinos Austria

Catuity Inc

CBD Online

Central Norseman Gold

Central Pacific Minerals

Ci Technologies

Coal & Allied

Consolidated Rutile

Cumnock Coal

Digital Now

Equatorial Mining

Gold and Resources

Highland Pacific

Hudson Timber and Hardware

Hutchinson Telecommunications

Iluka Resources

Ipoh Ltd

Isis Communications

Keycorp

Kingstream Resources

Looksmart (san fran)

McConnell Dowell

Melbourne IT

Metal Storm

Novus Petroleum

Oil Search

Pacifica

Powertel

Reckon

Rio Tinto

Roc Oil

Santos

Sea World Property Trust

Sigma Pharmaceutical

Singleton Group

Southern Pacific Petroleum

SPC

TVSN

United Energy

Ticor

Tourism Asset Holdings

Voicenet

Westfield America

WMC

Woodside Petroleum

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