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Gulf Keystone Petroleum (AIM: GKP), an independent oil & gas exploration company operating in Algeria and the Kurdish Region of Iraq, today announces the appointment of Mr. Mehdi Varzi as a non-executive director of the Company with immediate effect.

Mr. Varzi (age 62), who has joint Iranian and British nationality, is a graduate in Economics from the London School of Economics & Political Science and holds an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies, London University.

He began his professional career with the National Iranian Oil Company in 1968 before joining the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1972. During his nine years at the Ministry, Mr Varzi held a number of positions culminating in a four year posting as a Diplomat at the Iranian Embassy in Ankara, Turkey.

In 1982 Mr Varzi joined stockbrokers Grieveson Grant & co., in London as an Oil Consultant with special emphasis on OPEC and the world market. Following the merger in 1986 between Grieveson Grant and the then Kleinwort Benson, which subsequently became Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein (DrKW), Mr Varzi held a number of positions, culminating in the position of Managing Director, Oil & Gas Research. Following his retirement from full-time employment in 2001, he was retained as Senior Energy Consultant - a position which he held until 2005 when he left DrKW. In 2001, Mr. Varzi established an independent global energy consultancy, Varzi Energy, which advises a number of leading international financial institutions on global oil and gas developments.

From 1999 until 2002 Mr. Varzi also served as a Member of the International Advisory Panel of Nippon Oil. In 2003, he joined the Board of Sonoran Energy as a non-Executive Director and in 2005 he was appointed Director of Global Macro Energy Research and Middle Eastern Affairs at Trinity Funds. Mr Varzi served as adviser to the chairman of Turcas Petrol in 2006. He is also a regular speaker at international energy conferences.

Mr. Todd Kozel, Executive Chairman, Gulf Keystone, commented,

"I am delighted that Mehdi Varzi is joining Gulf Keystone. Mehdi has considerable experience in the international oil and gas industry and will significantly strengthen our Board. I look forward to his wise counsel as we seek to continue our growth strategy."

Save for the declarations below there are no updated disclosures to be made in respect of the appointment of Mr. Varzi under rule 17 and under Schedule 2 paragraph (g) of the AIM rules.

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or visit: www.gulfkeystone.com

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