Hyperdynamics Corporation has appointed John O'Keefe as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately. O'Keefe will be responsible for the Company's financing, treasury, external financial reporting, strategic planning and investor relations functions.

"John is a key addition to our senior management team and brings to our Company extensive experience - both domestic and international - in energy company financing, strategic planning, business development, merger and acquisition, and investor relations," said Ray Leonard, Hyperdynamics President and Chief Executive Officer.

"His international experience in particular with projects in Africa, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and Latin America, will be very beneficial as we continue to explore our Guinea concession in Northwest Africa and we begin to look at other opportunities to diversify Hyperdynamics' asset base and to generate cash flow," Leonard said.

Most recently, O'Keefe served first as CFO and later as President and CEO of Blast Energy Services, an early stage publicly traded energy company that provided satellite communication and lateral jetting services to oil and gas producers. At Blast, he led the development and funding of a new down-hole technology and construction, financing and deployment of a new concept jetting rig and the restructuring of the company.

O'Keefe began his career with BP and held assignments of increasing responsibility with Sun Oil and spin-off Oryx Energy, which later merged with Kerr McGee; with Santa Fe Snyder, later acquired by Devon Energy. He went on to serve as Chief Financial Officer of Ivanhoe Energy, a publicly traded, dual-listed international heavy oil development and production company.

O'Keefe holds a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Portsmouth in the U.K.; graduated as a chartered accountant from the University of South Bank, also in the U.K.; and attended the Executive Development Program at Harvard Business School.

Jason Davis, Hyperdynamics' former CFO, will remain with the company as Director of Finance and Treasury.

"Jason has played an important role in helping restore the Company's financial stability, and he will continue to be a key executive in his new Finance and Treasury role," Leonard said.

Tags: Hyperdynamics Corporation