Ener1 Announces Changes to Senior Management Team to Aid in Continued Business Transformation

NEW YORK, Nov. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Ener1, Inc. (OTC: HEVV) today announced that Alex Sorokin has joined the company as interim chief executive officer to lead the company's continuing efforts to improve its performance and shift its business toward heavy-duty transportation and electric grid energy storage applications.  Nicholas Brunero, who has served as Ener1's general counsel since 2008, has accepted the additional role of interim president.  In addition, Dale E. Parker, a seasoned financial executive and currently chairman of the board of HickoryTech Corporation (NASDAQ: HTCO), will serve as interim chief financial officer.

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Both Chris Cowger, who most recently served as chief executive officer, and Jeffrey Seidel who served as chief financial officer, have resigned from the company.  Messrs. Cowger and Seidel will remain available to management under new consulting agreements to ensure a smooth transition and assist in the company's transformation efforts.

"Alex and Dale bring a strong combination of operational and financial expertise with companies that are undergoing change," said Thomas J. Snyder, non-executive chairman of the board, Ener1, Inc.  "Together with Nick Brunero, who has been a part of nearly every facet of our business over the last three-and-a-half years, they will sharpen our focus on how we leverage Ener1's energy storage expertise, while implementing a sustainable structure to support our go-forward business strategy.  We want to thank Chris and Jeff for their service to the company, and for their commitment to its potential, and we're pleased that they will continue to work with us to position the company for the future."

Mr. Sorokin brings nearly thirty years of experience successfully leading companies through periods of transition and transformation.  Prior to joining Ener1, he has assisted more than 30 companies in restructuring and improving their businesses in the U.S. and internationally across a range of industries including technology, transportation and heavy manufacturing. He is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University.

Mr. Brunero has served as vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Ener1 since January 2010.  He was previously the company's vice president and deputy general counsel from March 2008 to December 2009.  Prior to joining the company, Mr. Brunero was an attorney at the law firm of Duval & Stachenfeld LLP, where his practice focused primarily on the representation of financial institutions in connection with commercial litigations.  He received his bachelor's degree from Bates College and his J.D. degree from Brooklyn Law School.  He will retain his general counsel responsibilities, in addition to his new role as interim president.

In addition to his role as chairman of the board of HickoryTech, Mr. Parker served in senior financial positions for industrial companies, including as CFO of Neenah Industries, PaperWorks Industries, Forest Resources and Appleton Papers.  From 1975 to 2000, he held financial positions of increasing responsibility at Black Clawson Companies, a manufacturer of capital equipment for the paper and plastics industries.  He received his MBA from Xavier University and his bachelor's degree from Miami University in Ohio.  Mr. Parker is also a Certified Public Accountant.

About Ener1, Inc.

Ener1, Inc. is a publicly-traded (OTC: HEVV) energy storage technology company that develops compact, lithium-ion-powered energy storage solutions for applications in the electric utility, transportation and industrial electronics markets.  With manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and Korea, the company's multiple chemistries, prismatic design, and modular stacking architecture deliver the optimal solution to each application.  For more information, visit Ener1's web site at www.ener1.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements made in this press release constitute forward-looking statements that are based on management's expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "believes," "scheduled," "estimates" and variations of these words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties, which are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual future results and trends may differ materially from what is forecast in forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and the company does not undertake any obligation to update or publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or changes in expectations after the date of this press release.

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SOURCE Ener1, Inc.