Exhibit 99.1
| | |
Press Release | | ![LOGO](https://capedge.com/proxy/8-K/0001193125-18-356496/g677552g21w66.jpg) |
Gulfport Energy Corporation Appoints David M. Wood President,
Chief Executive Officer and Member of the Board of Directors
Brings Four Decades of Oil and Gas Industry Expertise to Gulfport
OKLAHOMA CITY,December 18, 2018 – Gulfport Energy Corporation (NASDAQ: GPOR) (“Gulfport” or the “Company”) today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed David M. Wood, a40-year oil and gas industry veteran, to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Wood will also join the Company’s Board of Directors. Donnie Moore, who served as Interim Chief Executive Officer during a nationwide search led by Heidrick & Struggles for a chief executive to lead Gulfport for the long term, will continue to serve as the Company’s Chief Operating Officer and report to Mr. Wood.
Mr. Wood joins Gulfport from Arsenal Resources LLC, a West Virginia focused natural gas producer and First Reserve Corporation portfolio company, where he most recently served as Chairman of its Board of Directors and previously held the role of Chief Executive Officer. From 2013 to 2016, Mr. Wood served as a Senior Advisor to First Reserve, a premier energy-focused private equity firm, serving on several portfolio company boards. Prior to that, he spent more than 17 years at Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE: MUR), including as Chief Executive Officer, President, and Director from 2009 until his retirement in 2012. From 1980 to 1994, Mr. Wood held various senior positions with Ashland Exploration and Production. He began his career as a well-site geologist in Saudi Arabia. Mr. Wood currently serves on the board of Lilis Energy, Inc. (NYSE: LLEX), an exploration and development company operating in the Delaware Basin.
Mr. Wood commented, “I am excited to join the Gulfport team. The opportunity to build upon the asset base and drive value creation from the Company’s tremendous platform is very attractive and compelling. I look forward to getting to know our people over the coming weeks, immersing myself into the details of our asset base, and working to help drive shareholder returns.”
David L. Houston, Chairman of the Gulfport Board, said, “We are very pleased to welcome David as Gulfport’s new chief executive. After an extensive search, the Board is fully confident that David has the right mix of industry vision and experience, leadership skills and deep industry knowledge to lead Gulfport into the future. We look forward to drawing upon David’s experiences with a preeminent energy-focused private equity firm and as a CEO of a Fortune 100 company as well as his skills as a disciplined allocator of capital. We believe his strategic and operating