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Canadian Pacific sees another board member resign, third since May

Last updated: 01:28 07 Jul 2012 AEST, First published: 23:28 06 Jul 2012 AEST

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Canadian Pacific Railway (TSE:CP)(NYSE:CP) Friday announced that Tony Ingram has resigned from the company’s board of directors, joining a host of resignations since a major overhaul in management back in the spring.

Leading up to the company's annual general meeting in May, a long, public proxy battle was waged by CP’s largest shareholder Bill Ackman - head of Pershing Square Capital Management – who wanted to dethrone the long-time, yet faltering management at CP and elect seven hand-picked directors.

Hours before a vote to decide their fate, CP’s beleaguered CEO Fred Green resigned and five other board members said they would not stand for re-election.

Green was followed by a handful of CP’s senior management, including John Cleghorn, Tim Faithfull, Edmond Harris, Michael Phelps and Roger Phillips.

Ingram now joins the growing list of former board members, with CP noting that he "served diligently" on two board committees, namely the Safety, Operations and Environment Committee (SOE) and the Management Resources and Compensation Committee.

"Mr. Ingram's insight and guidance was particularly appreciated by the SOE Committee," said CP chairman Paul Haggis, who went on to thank Ingram for his contributions to the company.

CP noted that at this time the board does not intend to fill the vacancy created by Ingram's departure.

Just a week ago, the company named former Canadian National Railway Co. (TSE:CN) boss Hunter Harrison as its new president and chief executive officer.

Pershing Square had garnered support from many of the railway's other major shareholders, and several proxy advisory firms publically advocated for Ackman’s nominees in the election, including his call to appoint Harrison as Green’s replacement.

With nearly 50 years of railroad experience, Harrison previously served as the president and CEO of CN and, prior to that, as president and CEO of Illinois Central Railroad.

Harrison is also credited for turning CN into best in class in terms of profitability and efficiency, according to analysts cited by the Financial Post. CP on the other hand, currently has the worst operating ratio in the industry.

Canadian Pacific operates a North American transcontinental railway providing freight transportation services, logistics solutions and supply chain expertise.

Just a week after the company’s AGM, Teamsters Canada announced a strike against CP that lasted the six days sand saw 4,800 members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference walk off the job.

As a result of the strike, CP suspended its freight service across the country, prompting Federal Labour Minister Lisa Raitt to introduce back-to-work legislation.

In June the company and U.S. Silica Holdings (NYSE:SLCA) announced a multi-year agreement for the movement of frac sand from Silica’s mining and processing facility in Sparta, Wisconsin.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

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