Akerโค CEO Rรธkke accuses Kistefos of “Black Campaign” โคin โคSolstad Refinancing Dispute
Oslo, Norway -โ Aker CEO Kjell Inge Rรธkke has launched a sharp attack on Kistefos and โits owner โChristen Sveaas, alleging โa deliberate media campaign toโ damage Aker’s reputation amidst a legal battle over the 2023 refinancing of shipping companyโ Solstad. The dispute centers on claims that Aker secured an unfair advantage during the โขfinancial restructuring.
The conflict stemsโ from Kistefos’s belief that Aker benefited disproportionately when Solstad was โrefinanced last year. Rรธkke,โค who had previously declined โฃto comment extensively on the โmatter, has now responded with a letter to Aker shareholders, characterizing Kistefos’s actions as a calculated effort to โขdiscredit the company. This โฃlegal challenge unfolds as Solstad Maritime recently distributed 233 millionโข in โฃdividends.
In his letter,โ Rรธkke directly accuses Kistefos of orchestrating a “coordinated and conflict-oriented PR race” through Geelmuydenโ Kiese, filled with “serious claims,โ accusations, falsehoods,โ pointed formulations, overtramp, libel and characteristics.” He vehementlyโ deniesโ Kistefos’s assertion thatโข they attempted to participate in refinancing solutions, stating, โ”They never did.”
Rรธkke further dismisses the lawsuit as “absurdโค and unbelievable,” arguing that no โfinancialโ harm has been โฃdone. He โpoints to the notable gains shareholders haveโ experienced โขsince Aker proposed a solution โฃin October 2023, stating, “The shareholders have more than doubled the money.”
Kistefos CEO Bengtโค A. Rem responded to Rรธkke’s โขletter in a statement to Dagens Nรฆringsliv,โค calling it “an โคelegant attempt to derail โthe case by pointing out that ‘everyone’โ has made money.”โ Remโข reiterated Kistefos’s position that Aker profited excessively from theโฃ refinancing, emphasizing that Kistefos acts in the interest of the shareholder community while Rรธkke prioritizes โฃAker’s interests.
Rem declinedโข to address specific claims or personal attacks made in Rรธkke’s letter, โstating that the matter willโ be litigated in court. The case is scheduled to begin next week, and Kistefos intends toโข present its arguments through legalโฃ counsel.