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HAMILTON, Bermuda, April 25, 2016 -- The Board of Golden Ocean Group Ltd. ("Golden Ocean" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal as the new Chief Executive Officer of Golden Ocean Management AS. Ms. Vartdal has held the position as Chief Financial Officer since June 2010. Ms Vartdal holds a MSc (Siv.Ing.) in Physics and Mathematics from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and a MSc in Financial Mathematics from Heriot-Watt University, Scotland.
Ms. Vartdal will replace Herman Billung, who has been the company's CEO since 2005. Mr Billung has been instrumental in building Golden Ocean into a leading dry bulk company and the Board would like to thank Mr. Billung for his dedication and commitment through these 11 years.
The Company has also appointed Mr. Per Heiberg as the new Chief Financial Officer of Golden Ocean Management AS. Mr. Heiberg has been with the Company since July 2005, most recently as Vice President of Finance. Mr. Heiberg holds a Bachelors degree in administration and economics. The Company has also decided to establish a Chief Commercial Officer role and is actively searching for the right candidate to fill this position.
The changes follow the successful refinancing of Golden Ocean in February 2016, where the Company strengthened its financial position while preserving an attractive and leveraged exposure to the dry bulk market.
Director of the Board of Golden Ocean, Mr. John Fredriksen, comments: "I want to thank Herman Billung for his contribution and dedicated work over the last 11 years, and wish him all the best for the future. I am also very pleased that Birgitte Vartdal is stepping up as CEO and Per Heiberg as CFO. With a modern fleet, good financial position and strong organization Golden Ocean is well positioned to benefit from a recovery in the dry bulk market."
April 25, 2016
The Board of Directors
Golden Ocean Group Ltd.
Hamilton, Bermuda
This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.
HUG#2006268
CONTACT: Inger Marie Klemp (CFO), +47 23 11 40 00
