DALLAS, April 23, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. (Nasdaq:ZN) announced today that Justin Furnace has joined the Company as a member of its Board of Directors.
Justin Furnace is the president of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO), a trade association representing the interests of more than 2,300 independent oil and natural gas producers and royalty owners throughout Texas. Mr. Furnace is responsible for overseeing TIPRO's governmental affairs in Texas and Washington D.C. and representing the interests of the association membership before various regulatory bodies.
From 2007 to 2010, Mr. Furnace served as chief of staff and legal counsel to the Chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission. (During that period, the Chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission was Mr. Victor G. Carrillo, Zion's current President and Chief Operating Officer and a Board member). In that position, Mr. Furnace served as the Chairman's top policy advisor, in charge of evaluating, assessing and implementing all legal, technical and legislative strategies. From 2004 to 2007, Mr. Furnace practiced law at the Beaumont office of Mehaffy Webber where he specialized in transactions and litigation relating to oil and gas, real estate and corporate matters.
Mr. Furnace received his Doctorate of Jurisprudence from Texas Tech University School of Law. He is also a graduate of Hardin-Simmons University, where he currently serves on the Board of Development.
Mr. John Brown, Chairman of the Board and Founder, said: "We are delighted to have Justin Furnace join our Board of Directors. His petroleum industry experience in advocacy, legal, and regulation, together with his industry relationships, will serve as a great asset to Zion, as we continue our pursuit to recover hydrocarbons in Israel."
Zion's common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol "ZN".
Zion Oil & Gas, a Delaware corporation, explores for oil and gas in Israel in areas located onshore between Haifa and Tel Aviv. It currently holds three petroleum exploration licenses: the Joseph License (on approximately 83,272 acres) and the Asher-Menashe License (on approximately 78,824 acres) between Netanya, in the south, and Haifa, in the north, and the Jordan Valley License (on approximately 55,845 acres), just south of the Sea of Galilee. The total license area amounts to approximately 218,000 acres.
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Zion's homepage may be found at: www.zionoil.com