RNS Number:0543Q
Northern Petroleum PLC
23 September 2003


For immediate release

23 September 2003


                            Northern Petroleum Plc
                         ("Northern" or the "Company")

                             Acquistion of Interest

Northern Petroleum Plc announces that its wholly owned subsidiary, Northern
Petroleum (GB) Limited, has signed an agreement with Wessex Exploration Limited
("Wessex") concerning UK Onshore licence PEDL 089 and UK offshore blocks 987b
and 98/8b ("the Licences").

Northern has paid #20,000 to Wessex for a 10% interest in the Licences and
agreed to pay at the rate of 12.5% of costs of the first well drilled on the
licences to test a formation older than the Great Oolite. The cost of such a
well is estimated at #1,200,000.

Northern has also acquired an option until December 20th 2003 to commit to
drilling a well at its sole cost on any one of the licences before the end of
the 2004 to test the Great Oolite formation. Northern would thereby earn an
eventual beneficial 80% interest in the licences down to the level of the Great
Oolite formation.

Northern will become the Operator of the Licences.

The agreement is conditional upon the approval of the Department of Trade and
Industry.

Mr Derek Musgrove, managing director of Northern petroleum Plc stated, "Our main
objective is the great Oolite formation in which we have recently made a
discovery with the Avington - 2 well. The results from our work on the Isle of
Wight show that the Sandhills structure extends into the adjacent Isle of Wight
portion of PEDL 089 and also suggest that the results from the Lymington - 1
well warrant our further interest. The cost of a well to that depth is estimated
at #750,000.

Wessex have defined a Triassic level prospect culminating off the South Coast
between Hurst Point and Christchurch. This is in the same Sherwood and Bridport
Sand formations that are prolifically productive at Wytch Farm in Poole Bay to
the west. Under the terms the offshore licence it can only be drilled from the
onshore in licence PEDL 089.

This agreement adds a key area to our licence holdings in the South of England
in which we are now the predominant exploration company."

-Ends-

For further information please contact,

Derek Musgrove, Managing Director

020 7743 6080


Chris Roberts / Ben Simons

Hansard Communications

020 7245 1100 / 0771 309 0135


                      This information is provided by RNS
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