Orkla News

Inge K Hansen has been appointed Group President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the new Aker Kvaerner, one of three groups, which are being created as a result of the restructuring of the current Aker Kvaerner. The new Aker Kvaerner will be a leading industrial player with activities within oil, gas, energy and process. Inge K Hansen's previous position was acting CEO with Statoil, the Norwegian oil company. New CEO in Statoil will be Helge Lund, who until now has been CEO in Aker Kvaerner. Hansen has broad international experience from industry and financial institutions. Before joining Statoil as chief financial officer in 2000, he headed the investment bank Orkla Enskilda where he worked for six years.

Kvaerner today announced that it has reached agreement with its largest shareholder, Aker Maritime, on a comprehensive industrial and financial solution for the Kvaerner Group. Kvaerner Oil & Gas. It builds on the principles of the modified Yukos plan presented by Aker Maritime last week. Yukos Oil, has announced its support for the new solution. * A merger of Aker Maritime and Kvaerner Oil & Gas. Aker Maritime is valued at NOK 3.6 billion, including NOK 800 million in debt. issues. * A Directed Equity Issue of at least NOK 2 billion. book-building. * A Rights Issue for Kvaerner shareholders, as of December 14. per share as the directed Equity Issue. The agreement between Aker Maritime and Kvaerner involves the merger of Aker Maritime's core operations with those of Kvaerner Oil & Gas.

Norwegian shipping magnate John Fredriksen's Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) transport company Golar LNG said on Friday it raised $280 million in a private placement and planned to list in Oslo and later this year in New York. The company, which will become the first pure LNG transport company to be listed, said it had issued 56 million shares at $5 each in the placement and that Fredriksen had taken a 50 percent stake in the firm. "We sold 140 (million dollars worth) externally and John took 140 (million dollars worth)," Golar LNG director Tor Olav Troim said. Oslo investment banks Fearnleys and Orkla managed the placement of the 28 million shares with private investors.

Norwegian billionaire Kjell Inge Roekke launched a bid last week for full control of industrial holding firm Aker RGI, valuing it at about $1.09 billion. Roekke, who is chairman of Aker RGI and already owns almost two-thirds of the firm after a raid last year, said he wanted to delist Aker RGI from the Oslo bourse if his new bid succeeds. He said he is offering approximately $14 per “A” voting share and $13 per “B” share for Aker, whose interests range from offshore supply company Aker Maritime to an indirect stake in English premier league soccer club Wimbledon. Roekke will buy shares from anyone willing to sell. Under Norwegian law, he can force all minority shareholders to sell to him if he achieves 90 percent control. The offer will run from Aug. 23 to Sept.

NCL Holding ASA appointed Orkla Finans and Morgan Stanley as financial advisers following a takeover bid from Carnival Corp. Carnival, the world's largest cruise operator, has offered 30 Norwegian crowns per share for NCL, the fourth biggest operator. Miami-based NCL has rejected the bid as too low and has hinted that rival bids might be in the pipeline.

accept the offer from World Nordic Aps to buy all shares of Bergesen. registered as shareholders as of 24 April 2003. paid on May 14 2003. On 7 April 2003 World Nordic ApS, a Danish limited company controlled by the Sohmen family, announced a mandatory cash offer for the A- and B-shares of Bergesen d.y. ASA (“Bergesen”). On 6 April 2003, World Nordic ApS entered into an agreement with Petter C. G. Sundt and Morten Sig. Bergesen to acquire their shares in Bergesen, in aggregate 16,575,106 A-shares. The price was NOK 180 per share, and included the proposed dividend of NOK 7 per share. capital of Bergesen. Pursuant to the Securities Trading Act Section 4-16, the Board of Directors of Bergesen shall make a statement regarding the offer.

Aker Kvaerner and Aker RGI have entered into an agreement to establish a joint ownership for their wholly owned shipyards in Germany, respectively Kvaerner Warnow Werft and Aker MTW. Among other conditions, the agreement is dependent on approval from Aker Kvaerner's and Aker RGI's lenders. The aim is to implement the new ownership by the end of 2002. Aker Kvaerner will own 40 percent of the two yards. shipbuilding. shipyards in Europe, USA and Brazil. the largest shipyard groupings in the world. combine their shipbuilding activities when the time is right. in which immediate synergies have been identified. management at each yard have studied alternative forms of cooperation. joint leadership team was established earlier this year. competitiveness.