Håkan Kirstein appointed as Eltel’s new CEO

Eltel’s Board of Directors has appointed Håkan Kirstein as Eltel’s new President and Chief Executive Officer. He will commence in his new position on 19 September 2016.

Håkan Kirstein is currently a member of the Board of Directors at Eltel AB, which he joined in May 2016. He started his career in the retail business at Statoil and progressed to being CEO of Statoil Hydro Sweden AB. He spent 15 years at Statoil. Following the period at Statoil, Mr Kirstein held the position as CEO of Niscayah Group AB, a market leader in the technical security services and at that time listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. Under his leadership the company underwent a major transformation programme resulting in a significant profitability improvement. Prior to joining Eltel’s board, Håkan had an interim assignment as CEO of Imtech Nordic AB, a leading installation company in electrical engineering, heating and sanitation and HVAC technology.

Eltel’s chairman of the Board of Directors Gérard Mohr comments:

"Håkan Kirstein has a solid track record in the management of service business with high customer oriented focus and proven leadership skills in decentralised and multi-site companies, which fits well with The Eltel Way. He is also experienced in operations where excellence in project management is key. In addition, the Board was impressed by his strategic strength during his involvement in Eltel’s strategy review process in the first half of this year. I am confident that Håkan has excellent prerequisites to be successful in leading the future development of Eltel.”

Håkan Kirstein comments: "I am honoured to have been appointed the CEO of Eltel. It is a privilege to be part of a company fiercely committed to delivering high quality service and solutions to our customers. I genuinely look forward to become part of the Eltel team”.

As of 19 September Mr Kirstein will leave his position as member of the Board of Eltel and Mr Kirstein’s board position will currently not be replaced by a new member.

Eltel’s Board of Directors and Axel Hjärne have agreed that Axel Hjärne will stay on in his position as CEO until 18 September 2016.

“Under Axel Hjärne’s outstanding leadership, and thanks to his vision and his shaping of “The Eltel Way”, Eltel has grown to rank among the European leaders in the Infranet industry. On behalf of the whole Board, I thank Axel for his great contribution", says Gérard Mohr.

For further information:
Ingela Ulfves
VP – IR and Group Communications
Tel: +358 40 311 3009, ingela.ulfves@eltelnetworks.com  

This information is information that Eltel AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, at 12.00 CET on August 26, 2016.

About Eltel
Eltel is a leading European provider of technical services for critical infrastructure networks – Infranets – in the segments of Power, Communication and Transport & Security, with operations throughout the Nordic and Baltic regions, Poland, Germany, the United Kingdom and Africa. Eltel provides a broad and integrated range of services, spanning from maintenance and upgrade services to project deliveries. Eltel has a diverse contract portfolio and a loyal and growing customer base of large network owners. In 2015 Eltel net sales amounted to EUR 1,255 million. The current number of employees is approximately 9,600. Since February 2015, Eltel AB is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.