Akastor ASA: Closing of initial public offering (IPO) by HMH

Reference is made to Akastor ASA's (together with its subsidiaries, "Akastor") (OSE: AKAST) announcement dated 31 March 2026 concerning pricing of the initial public offering (the "IPO") of its indirect affiliate HMH Holding Inc. (including its subsidiaries at closing of the IPO, "HMH"). HMH has now closed its IPO of 10,520,000 shares of its Class A common stock.

The shares of HMH's Class A common stock began trading on The Nasdaq Global Select Market on 1 April 2026 under the ticker symbol "HMH."

Akastor's total net receivable from repayment of shareholder loans and proceeds from the IPO is about USD 46.8 million. Akastor's remaining equity interest in HMH has been reduced down to about 37%. The underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,578,000 shares of Class A common stock at the IPO price, less underwriting discounts and commissions, which may further reduce Akastor's equity interest down to about 35% (if exercised in full).

A registration statement relating to these securities was declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on 31 March 2026. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. To obtain a copy of the prospectus free of charge, visit the SEC website, www.sec.gov (http://www.sec.gov/), and search under the registrant's name, "HMH Holding Inc.".

HMH's board of directors consists of seven directors in total, including Karl Erik Kjelstad (CEO of Akastor) and Svein Oskar Stoknes (CFO in Aker ASA and director on the board of Akastor). In this capacity, Kjelstad and Stoknes are entitled to director compensation from HMH, as further described in the prospectus filed by HMH with the SEC, which includes certain restricted stock units ("RSUs") in HMH that will vest on the day prior to HMH's first annual meeting of stockholders in 2027 following which each of Kjelstad and Stoknes, subject to certain conditions, will receive 8,486 shares of HMH's Class A common stock. The HMH shares are currently considered to be linked to the shares in Akastor, cf. the Market Abuse Regulation ("MAR") article 19. Please see attached notification forms in accordance with MAR article 19.

For further information about the IPO, HMH and Akastor's ownership in HMH, including the HMH prospectus and the registration statement, reference is made to the separate announcement issued by HMH which is available on HMH's website: https://hmhw.com/investors/.

Advokatfirmaet BAHR AS and Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP are acting as legal advisors to Akastor in connection with the IPO.

For further information, please contact:

Øyvind Paaske Chief Financial Officer Tel: +47 917 59 705 E-mail: oyvind.paaske@akastor.com

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act and article of the Market Abuse Regulations ("MAR").

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About HMH HMH is a leading provider of highly engineered, mission-critical equipment solutions, providing customers with a comprehensive portfolio of drilling equipment, services and systems utilized in oil and gas drilling operations, both offshore and onshore. HMH's global reach, technical expertise and innovative product offerings, coupled with its integrated operations from manufacturing to aftermarket services, allow HMH to provide customers with first class technology, engineering and project management services through the entire asset lifecycle of the equipment it provides. In addition, HMH is growing its portfolio of products and services to adjacent industries, such as mining. The complexity and criticality of HMH's installed equipment drive customers to choose HMH for their aftermarket support, particularly in the offshore environment, which is subject to extensive regulation.

HMH was formed as an independent company in October 2021 through the merger of Baker Hughes' (Nasdaq: BKR) Subsea Drilling Systems business and Akastor ASA's wholly owned subsidiary, MHWirth AS. The shares of HMH's Class A common stock began trading on The Nasdaq Global Select Market on 1 April 2026 under the ticker symbol "HMH."

For further information, please visit homepage: https://hmhw.com/

About Akastor Akastor is a Norway-based oil-services investment company with a portfolio of industrial holdings and other investments. The company has a flexible mandate for active ownership and long-term value creation.

For further information, please visit homepage: https://akastor.com/