DGAP-News: Linde Public Limited Company / Bekanntmachung der Einberufung zur
Hauptversammlung
Linde Public Limited Company: Bekanntmachung der Einberufung zur
Hauptversammlung am 27.07.2020 in Virtual and Guildford, UK mit dem Ziel der
europaweiten Verbreitung gemäß §121 AktG
2020-07-08 / 15:05
Bekanntmachung gemäß §121 AktG, übermittelt durch DGAP
- ein Service der EQS Group AG.
Für den Inhalt der Mitteilung ist der Emittent / Herausgeber verantwortlich.
Linde Public Limited Company Guildford INFORMATION REGARDING
CHANGES TO THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
OF SHAREHOLDERS TO BE HELD ON JULY 27, 2020
Due to the ongoing public-health crisis caused by the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic, related governmental actions and the
importance of safeguarding the health of all Linde plc
stakeholders, Linde plc (the 'Company') is providing the notice
below of changes to the location, time and format of its 2020
Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (the 'Supplement'). This
supplements the Company's Notice of the 2020 Annual General
Meeting of Shareholders and Proxy Statement dated April 28, 2020
(the 'Notice and Proxy Statement') furnished to the Company's
shareholders in connection with the 2020 Annual General Meeting of
Shareholders (the 'Annual General Meeting') originally scheduled
to occur on Monday, July 27, 2020 at 11:00 AM local time, at the
Corinthia Hotel, Whitehall Place, Westminster, London SW1A 2BD,
United Kingdom. The Company is filing this Supplement with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and thereby making it
available to the Company's shareholders, on July 6, 2020. The
Notice and Proxy Statement, 2019 Form 10-K and Annual Report to
Shareholders, and 2019 IFRS Annual Report to Shareholders remain
available at
www.proxyvote.com
and
https://investors.linde.com/annual-general-meeting-of-shareholders
*ALL INFORMATION IN THE NOTICE AND PROXY STATEMENT CONTINUES TO
APPLY EXCEPT AS AMENDED OR MODIFIED BY THIS SUPPLEMENT.
SHAREHOLDERS SHOULD REVIEW THE NOTICE AND PROXY STATEMENT AND THIS
SUPPLEMENT IN DECIDING HOW TO VOTE THEIR SHARES.*
NOTICE OF CHANGE TO THE LOCATION AND TIME, AND THE ADDITION OF A
VIRTUAL MEETING FORMAT, FOR THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
To the shareholders of Linde plc:
THE COMPANY HEREBY GIVES NOTICE of a change to the location and
time of the Annual General Meeting and the addition of a virtual
meeting format for the safety of shareholders. The Company will
hold the Annual General Meeting on Monday, July 27, 2020 at 1:00
PM U.K time (8:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time in the U.S), as
follows:
1. Through a VIRTUAL meeting format that all
shareholders are *urged to participate in to
support the health and well-being of the
Company shareholders, employees, directors
and others considering the COVID-19
pandemic;* and
2. Through an in-person meeting, as required by
Irish law, at the Company's principal offices
located at The Priestley Centre, 10 Priestley
Road, Surrey Research Park, Guildford, Surrey
GU2 7XY United Kingdom. *However, as
discussed below, this in-person meeting will
be subject to significant attendance
restrictions given COVID-19 safety concerns
and government regulations in effect in the
U.K., and shareholders are therefore urged
not to attend in person but instead to
participate in the virtual meeting format.*
The items of business for the Annual General Meeting are the same
as set forth in the meeting notice previously made available to
you.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
*Eligible Shareholders*
Only holders of record of Linde ordinary shares at the close of
business on April 27, 2020 were entitled to notice of the Annual
General Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof.
Pursuant to section 1105(2) of the Irish Companies Act 2014, only
holders of record of Linde ordinary shares at 1:00 p.m. U.K. time
(8:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time in the U.S.) on July 25, 2020 will
be entitled to attend, speak, ask questions and vote at the Annual
General Meeting in respect of the number of shares registered in
their name at that time.
*Participation through the Virtual Annual General Meeting Format*
*Your participation in the virtual format of the Annual General
Meeting is urged *and how you access the virtual meeting depends
on how you own your Linde shares as described below. Participants
may access the Virtual Meeting Site beginning at 12:45 PM U.K.
time (7:45 AM Eastern Daylight Time in the U.S.) to allow log-in
prior to the start of the Annual General Meeting at 1:00 p.m. U.K.
time (8:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time in the U.S.).
A. *Shareholders of Record and U.S.-Based Shareholder Accounts*
You may own Linde shares of record (that is, directly in your own
name or in the name of some entity but not through a brokerage or
similar account) and if so, your shares are held in account at our
stock transfer agent, Computershare. You may also own your Linde
shares through a broker, bank or other institution in an account
maintained in the U.S. If so, you must visit
www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/LIN2020
(the 'Virtual Meeting Site') to access the virtual Annual General
Meeting format.
When the Linde Notice and Proxy Statement was originally provided
to you, a 16-digit control number ('Control Number') was also
provided and appeared on the Notice of Internet Availability, the
proxy card, or some other voting instruction form. You must enter
this Control Number to attend the virtual Annual General Meeting,
to vote or submit comments or questions on proposals, and exercise
any other shareholder rights at the Annual General Meeting.
However, if you have lost your Control Number, you may still enter
as a 'Guest' but you will not be able to vote during the Annual
General Meeting or to submit questions or comments. See the
instructions below for obtaining a new Control Number before the
Annual General Meeting that will allow you full shareholder
participation. If you have already voted by proxy before the
Annual General Meeting, you are not required to vote again at the
virtual meeting unless you want to change your vote since
submitting the proxy up to the day of the Annual General Meeting.
B. *Shareholders with Accounts Outside of the U.S.*
If you are not a shareholder of record or you do not own shares
through some U.S.-based account, then you own your Linde shares
through a broker, bank or other institution in an account
maintained outside of the U.S., including through Clearstream in
the European Union. If so, you can either:
1. Fully participate in the virtual meeting
by accessing the Internet service at the
following website of ADEUS, Linde's agent
for non-U.S.-based accounts:
https://hv.adeus.de/hvs/linde
This will allow you to listen to the
Annual General Meeting, to vote during
the meeting and to submit questions or
comments in writing. *However, to fully
participate in the Annual General Meeting
through this website, you must first
request a Proxy Card which will include
your access code ('Access Code'). Proxy
Cards can be ordered through your custody
bank and will be issued by ADEUS. For
support, please contact the ADEUS
telephone HOTLINE at +49(0)89 20 190 352
or by email at*
*hv-service.linde@adeus.de*
*If you do not obtain an Access Code or
lose it, you may still enter the virtual
meeting as a 'Guest' but you will not be
able to vote during the Annual General
Meeting or to submit questions or
comments. For support, please contact the
ADEUS telephone HOTLINE at +49(0)89 20
190 352 or by email at*
*hv-service.linde@adeus.de*
2. Visit the Virtual Meeting Site at
www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/LIN2020
to access the virtual Annual General
Meeting format and enter as a 'Guest.'
This will allow you to listen to the
Annual General Meeting, but you will not
be able to vote during the Annual General
Meeting or to submit questions or
comments.
*Participation in person in Guildford, U.K.*
The Company will also conduct the Annual General Meeting in person
at the Company's Guildford, U.K. offices. However, the Annual
General Meeting will be conducted primarily through the virtual
meeting format, and no members of the Board of directors or senior
management will be present in Guildford given the COVID-19
pandemic. This physical aspect of the Annual General Meeting is
being conducted to meet Irish corporate law legal requirements,
*but given health and safety concerns, the Company urges
shareholders not to attend in person and instead to participate by
accessing the virtual format of the Annual General Meeting.*
At this time, given the current COVID-19 U.K. government
restrictions on the size and type of permissible meetings and the
capacity of the Company's Guildford office, we anticipate that the
number of shareholders who can attend the meeting in person will
be significantly restricted.
To attend the Annual General Meeting in person, you will need to
register upon arrival. We may check for your name on our
shareholders' list and ask you to produce valid photo ID. If your
shares are held in an account with your broker or bank, you should
bring your most recent brokerage account statement or other
evidence of your share ownership. If we cannot verify that you own
Linde shares, and/or we have reached the meeting attendance
capacity, it is possible that you will not be admitted. We may
also impose additional screening measures for the health and
safety of all participants.
As circumstances relating to the COVID-19 pandemic develop,
including any new or revised U.K. government restrictions, the
Company may impose additional procedures or limitations on Annual
General Meeting attendees beyond those described in the proxy
statement and in this Supplement.
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