WesternOne appoints Peter Blake as CEO

May 27, 2014 – WesternOne Inc. has announced that its Board of Directors
has appointed Peter Blake as Chief Executive Officer, effective
September 1, 2014. Mr. Blake will succeed Robert King, who has acted as
interim CEO since September 8, 2013. Mr. King will continue in his role
as Chairman of the Board.

Mr. Blake is currently Chief Executive Officer of Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc., a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange. As announced on October 8, 2013, Mr. Blake is stepping down from Ritchie Bros.

“Peter brings extensive knowledge and experience of leading a highly successful organization that has grown to a global scale and created exceptional shareholder value. Under Peter’s leadership Ritchie Bros. has grown in 10 years from a $250 million market cap business to a $2.5 billion market cap business,” says Mr. King. “Peter’s credentials from the construction and infrastructure background are ideally suited to the WesternOne business. Our Board is confident that he is the right CEO to lead this next exciting stage of growth for WesternOne.”

“WesternOne has achieved a solid track record of growth and I’m excited about the appointment,” says Mr. Blake. “I look forward to working with the leadership team when I join in September and driving future growth together.”

Mr. Blake joined Ritchie Bros. as a controller in 1991 and has assumed a number of senior positions within the company. Since 2004, he has served as Chief Executive Officer of Ritchie Bros. Mr. Blake is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British Columbia, and has a Diploma of Technology from British Columbia Institute of Technology and a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Alberta.

For more information
www.weq.ca