The composition of the Board should consider expertise, capacity and diversity appropriate to attend to the Company's goals, main challenges and the common interests of all shareholders. Each board member should have sufficient time available to devote to his or her appointment as a board member. The number of board members should be decided on this basis, and shall consist of minimum four board members. Further, individuals of the Board shall be willing and able to work as a team, resulting in the Board working effectively as a collegiate body.

The Board shall be composed so that it can act independently of any special interests. A majority of the shareholder-elected members of the Board shall be independent of the executive management and material business connections of the Company. Further, at least two of the members of the Board shall be independent of the Company's major shareholder(s). For the purposes of this corporate governance policy, a major shareholder shall constitute a shareholder that owns or controls 10% or more of the Company's shares or votes, and independence shall entail that there are no circumstances or relations that may be expected to be able to influence independent assessments of the person in question.

The members of the Board and the chairman of the Board shall be elected by the Company's general meeting. No member of the Company's executive management shall be members of the Board. The general manager is prohibited from being a member of the Board.

At least half of the members in the Company's Board shall reside in Norway or another EEA country unless the Ministry of Finance grants a specific exemption from the statutory residency requirement. Both gender shall be represented at the Board with a minimum of 40% representation each. The term of office for the board members shall not be longer than two years at a time. Members of the Board may be re-elected. The election of the members of the Board should be phased so that the entire Board is not replaced at the same time.

The Company's annual report will provide information regarding the expertise, experience and independence of the members of the Board, as well as information on their history of attendance at board meetings. Further, the annual report will identify the members of the Board that are considered to be independent. Detailed information on candidates for the Board (both appointments and re-elections) shall be made available within the 21 days' notice period for calling a general meeting.

Members of the Board are encouraged to own shares in the Company. However, caution should be taken not to let this encourage a short-term approach which is not in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders over the longer term.