Zoltav Resources: Strengths Board Experience and Corporate Governance

Zoltav Resources (AIM: ZOL), the CIS-focused oil and gas exploration and production company, is pleased to announce the appointments, with immediate effect, of Alexander Gorodetsky and Andrey Immel as non-executive directors of the Company.

Mr Gorodetsky joins the board as an independent non-executive director and brings to the Company a wealth of commercial experience in Russia and the CIS, including over two decades in the international oil and gas industry. He began his career in 1995 within Alfa-Eco, a leading gas and oil trading business in Russia, before joining TNK and, later, TNK-BP. He is currently the general partner of Strategy Capital Advisor Limited, a private equity fund established in 2009 with approximately $0.5 billion under management and a mandate to invest in projects, including within the oil and gas sector, across the former Soviet Union. Mr Gorodetsky led the successful sale in 2015 of SANORS, a leading Russian petrochemical company under the management of Strategy Capital Advisor Limited, to Rosneft.

Prior to Strategy Capital Advisor Limited, Mr Gorodetsky was first deputy to the chairman of the board of East One Group, an international investment advisory group providing strategic and investment management services to a diversified portfolio of companies. During his time at East One Group, Mr Gorodetsky assisted in the strategic development of over 25 portfolio companies including GEO ALLIANCE Group, one of the leading independent oil and gas exploration and production groups in Ukraine.

From 2000-2006, Mr Gorodetsky was president/business unit leader for TNK-BP Ukraine. Mr Gorodetsky contributed significantly to the increased brand awareness of TNK-BP in the Ukrainian market, where it is among the leading oil and gas companies with more than 6,000 employees. Mr Gorodetsky was recognized by the Government of Ukraine for his significant contribution to the national economy.

Mr Immel joins the board of Zoltav as a representative of Bandbear Limited (“Bandbear”), one of Zoltav’s significant shareholders, in accordance with the terms of Bandbear’s relationship agreement with the Company. Mr Immel is an experienced Russian corporate lawyer. He has, since 2012, been the head of the legal department of Moscow-based Contact-Service LLC, a real estate company, where his responsibilities include corporate governance and the provision of legal support for transactions. From 2008-2012, Mr Immel worked for Himuglemet, a manufacturer of conveyer band and other components for coal mines, both as legal counsel and as a corporate and tax lawyer. His responsibilities included legal due diligence and support for corporate transactions.

Following the appointment of Mr Immel, the Company’s two largest shareholders remain entitled to each nominate one additional representative to the board in the future, should they elect to do so, in accordance with the terms of the relationship agreements entered into with them.

Alastair Ferguson, Executive Chairman, commented:

“The appointment of Mr Gorodetsky is very much in line with Zoltav’s commitment to having a board of directors with highly relevant Russian and CIS experience. He is a highly respected individual within the international oil and gas sector and I believe his commercial experience will be immensely valuable as we seek to develop Zoltav further through acquisition within the CIS.

“I am also pleased to welcome Mr Immel to the board as a representative of Bandbear. He is an experienced Russian lawyer and shares Zoltav’s commitment to high standards of corporate governance.”