The Board of Directors of Marine Harvest ASA has received CEO Atle Eide`s resignation and have agreed with him that he will resign as CEO effective September 1. 2007.
For Eide the moving of Marine Harvest ASA` company headquarter from Stavanger to Oslo resulted in extensive travel and prolonged stays in Oslo resulting in increased time away from his family. From the earliest stages in the process of creating the new Marine Harvest Atle Eide informed the Board that he would re-evaluate how long he could remain in the position as CEO.
The Board recognises Atle Eide`s substantial contribution to and execution of Fjord Seafood ASA and Marine Harvest NV acquisitions that fulfilled the vision of creating the world's largest aquaculture company.
In the search for a new CEO the Board will place high emphasis on the fact that the company now is entering a new phase with a strong focus on realizing integration synergies, enforcing value added production and sales and the creation of organizational capabilities in order to strengthen its position as a global leader in seafood.
Atle Eide will receive severance pay equal to two years salary, approximately 7 million NOK and he holds no options in the company.
The Boards is very pleased to announce that the present vice chairman of the Board Leif Frode Onarheim has agreed to be acting CEO until a new CEO is in place. Atle Eide will assist Leif Frode Onarheim in a transition period.
Leif Frode Onarheim has been Chairman of the Board in Fjord Seafood ASA and has extensive experience in the food processing industry as CEO of the listed company Nora, which merged with Orkla ASA, where Onarheim also has served as Chairman of the Board. He has been the Dean and Managing Director of the Norwegian School of Management (BI) and President of the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO), a member of the Norwegian Parliament from 2001 - 2005, and still serves as a Director in several Boards.
Chairman of the Board, Svein Aaser said in response to the change in CEO:
- I would like to extend my gratitude to Atle Eide for the role he has played in the creation of Marine Harvest ASA and wish him all the best in his new pursuits. At the same time I am very pleased that Leif Frode Onarheim has agreed to lead the company into this important and new phase. I have known him for over 25 years and admire his integrity, experience and qualities as an industrial leader. Leif Frode Onarheim is highly respected in the industry in Norway and beyond. He will be working closely with the management team in order to reinforce Marine Harvest`s position as a leading seafood company.
Contact :
Svein Aaser +47 47 61 14 76
Leif Frode Onarheim +47 92 46 20 00
Atle Eide +47 91 15 29 77