Gulf Keystone Petroleum : Appointment of Chief Strategy Officer

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23 August 2015

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited. (LSE: GKP)

('Gulf Keystone' or 'the Company')

Appointment of Chief Strategy Officer

Gulf Keystone is pleased to announce that Nadhim Zahawi has been appointed as Chief Strategy Officer.

Mr Zahawi is joining Gulf Keystone's management team and will be responsible for the evaluation of strategic options for the Company, reporting to CEO Jón Ferrier.

Mr Zahawi, 48, is of Kurdish origin, and moved from Iraq to the UK in his childhood. He has maintained contact with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq throughout his extensive career.

He graduated fromUniversity College Londonwith a BSc in Chemical Engineering before going on to have a successful career in business. This included his early career as European Marketing Director for Smith & Brooks Ltd, and then as the co-founder and former CEO of YouGov, the international market research firm which listed on The London Stock Exchange's AIM market in 2005. Mr Zahawi has held a number of advisory roles in the Oil & Gas sector.

He has been a ConservativeMember of ParliamentforStratford-on-Avonsince2010. Given Mr Zahawi's parliamentary commitments, he will work with Gulf Keystone on a part time basis. The Chief Strategy Officer position is not a Board appointment.

Commenting on the appointment, Jón Ferrier, CEO, said:

'I am delighted to have secured the services of Nadhim at this important time in Gulf Keystone's development. He will be a key part of the management team, alongside Sami Zouari, Tony Peart and John Stafford.

'With his Kurdish heritage and as a successful businessman, Nadhim brings a range of additional and critical skills to the Company. I firmly believe that the breadth and depth of his regional knowledge will prove invaluable, and will help further strengthen our relationships within the Kurdistan Regional Government amongst other key stakeholders in the Kurdistan Region and internationally.

'On behalf of everyone at Gulf Keystone, I extend a warm welcome to Nadhim and look forward to his contribution.'

Enquiries:

or visit:www.gulfkeystone.com

Notes to Editors:

Disclaimer

This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements. These statements are made by the Company's Directors in good faith based on the information available to them up to the time of their approval of this announcement but such statements should be treated with caution due to inherent uncertainties, including both economic and business factors, underlying such forward-looking information. This announcement has been prepared solely to provide additional information to shareholders to assess the Group's strategies and the potential for those strategies to succeed. This announcement should not be relied on by any other party or for any other purpose.

This communication and the information contained herein is not an offer of securities for sale in the United States. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States unless they are registered or are exempt from registration. Any public offering of securities to be made in the United States would be made by means of a prospectus that would contain detailed information about the company and its management, as well as financial statements. The company does not intend to register any portion of this offering in the United States or to conduct a public offering in the United States or any other jurisdiction. Any public offering of securities to be made in the United States would be made by means of a prospectus that would contain detailed information about the Company and its management, as well as financial statements. Copies of this communication are not being, and should not be, distributed in or sent into the United States.