OSLO, Norway, Sept. 30, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- As of September 30, Eldar Saetre will serve as acting chief financial officer and executive vice president and member of Statoil's (OSE:STL) (NYSE:STO) corporate executive committee. He will be responsible for the following staff functions: corporate control, planning and accounting; group finance; investor relations; legal affairs; information management and technology; corporate services and corporate audit. The human resources function will report to acting chief executive Inge K Hansen. This also applies to the health, safety and the environment function, and the Snoehvit project. Mr Saetre (47) is a business economist. He joined Statoil in 1980 and has held a number of positions in the group. Mr Saetre became senior vice president for corporate control, planning and accounting in 1998.
Further information from:
Kristofer Hetland, public affairs manager, +47 51 99 47 00 (office), +47 905 01 937 (mobile)
Mari Thjoemoee, vice president for investor relations, +47 51 99 77 90 (office), +47 907 77 824 (mobile)