HANOVER, Germany - TUI’s supervisory board chief, Juergen Krumnow, will remain at the company despite efforts by its biggest shareholder to oust him at Wednesday’s annual meeting, which lasted 12 hours with record attendance.

John Fredriksen, a Norwegian shipping tycoon who owns 11.7 percent of TUI, won 42.76 percent support for the move to oust Krumnow, but needed a majority. Shareholders owning 71.7 percent of the stock were present.

If Fredriksen had won, it would have been the first time shareholders succeeded in making a supervisory board chief of a German company quit.

Krumnow staying put means Chief Executive Michael Frenzel’s job is also safe for now. After more than a decade of dismal returns on TUI shares, both are under pressure from shareholders to quit for mismanaging the company and hand-picking board members with whom TUI does business.

Fredriksen wants to join the supervisory board only if Krumnow leaves. The board does not support Krumnow’s removal.

"We are not going to give up," said Tor Olav Troim, Fredriksen’s ally and aide, who was at the meeting. "We will meet again. To have a new start, you need a new chairman. We are not here to escape."

Fredriksen, who does not want to sell his stake, can call an extraordinary shareholder meeting and garner more support.

The meeting’s mood was acrimonious, with Krumnow and Frenzel sitting side by side, occasionally resting their chins on their hands in between answering questions about accounting, board member appointments and operational issues.

Relishing a high-profile showdown over company strategy, Troim pointed out that TUI managers own just 2,750 shares, a faint show of confidence. —Reuters