Arco, Exxon, Mobil, Phillips Announce Aurora Discovery in Prudhoe Bay Area


ANCHORAGE, AK, March 23, 1999 (PRIMEZONE) -- ARCO Alaska, Inc. (NYSE: ARC), Exxon Company USA (NYSE: XON), Mobil Alaska E&P Inc. (NYSE: MOB), and Phillips Petroleum Company (NYSE: P) today announced the discovery of a new Prudhoe Bay satellite field. Prudhoe Bay satellites are oil and gas accumulations in or around the Prudhoe Bay field that are not part of the main reservoir.

The V-200 well encountered a 58-foot vertical section of oil-bearing sand in the Kuparuk formation. This Kuparuk accumulation, which will be named the Aurora field, tested over 1900 barrels per day of 30 degree API gravity oil and 1.3 million standard cubic feet of gas per day. The discovery well is located on a lease in which ARCO and Exxon each own a 50 percent interest.

The accumulation is estimated to contain 20 to 35 million recoverable barrels of oil, including adjacent leases held by ARCO, Exxon, Mobil and Phillips. Plans for additional appraisal activities at Aurora during 1999 are being evaluated.

The Aurora field extends the recent string of successful Prudhoe Bay satellite discoveries. Eight other wells were drilled within the past 18 months to discover and delineate the nearby Midnight Sun, Sambuca, Northwest Eileen Kuparuk, and S- and W-Pad Schrader Bluff satellites.


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Cautionary Note to Investors-The Securities and Exchange Commission(SEC) only permits oil and gas companies to disclose in their filings with the SEC those reserves classified as proved, i.e., reserves that are economically and legally producible under existing economic and operating conditions. In this press release we use the term "estimated" reserves, which SEC guidelines strictly prohibit us from using in our SEC filings. Investors are urged to consider the reserve disclosure in our 1998 report on Form 10-K. Some of the matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially based on numerous factors, including the realized level of crude oil and natural gas production and other risks detailed from time to time in the company's reports to the SEC, including the 1998 report on Form 10-K.]



            

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