GULFSANDS PETROLEUM HAS provided the following update on the company's operations at Block 26, Syria where Gulfsands holds a 50 per cent interest and acts as operator. The Yousefieh 3 vertical appraisal well, located approximately 500 meters to the south-east of the Yousefieh 1 discovery well,encountered the top of the Cretaceous Massive Formation at a measured depth("MD") of 1946 meters (1530 meters true vertical depth sub surface

AMINEX ANNOUNCED THAT the South Malak -1 well in the West Esh El Mellaha PSC area, onshore Gulf of Suez, Egypt, has now been drilled to a total depth of 11,200 feet.

Oil shows were encountered in Pre-Miocene Matulla sand stringers from 10,858 to 10,900 feet and high gas readings were encountered from 10,300 feet through to total depth.

GULF KEYSTONE HAS announced the results of a preliminary evaluation of the Shaikan-1 discovery located in northern Iraq. Given the materiality of the discovery,the Company felt it prudent to seek independent evaluation of the Shaikan-1 well, despite being at an early stage of evaluation and testing. Accordingly,

VAST EXPLORATION HAS provided an operational update with regards to its exploration activities on the Qara Dagh Block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

AUDAX RESOURCES ANNOUNCED that Atwood Oceanics has been selected as the successful bidder to provide Drilling Rig Services for the deepwater Sambuca prospect in the Kerkouane permit offshore Tunisia. Atwood will be providing the Atwood Southern Cross semi-submersible offshore drilling unit to conduct the work program.

THE FIRST WELL of Mubadala, the Abu Dhabi-based investment company, and ConocoPhillips joint venture in Kazakstan, will be drilled next year, a ConocoPhillips executive said.

"Plans call for pre-drilling seismic surveys and analyses to be completed this year. “We are currently planning to drill the first well in 2010. The production start date depends upon our exploration programme results," said Charlie Rowton.

BAHRAIN HOPES TO sign a deal with US energy firm Occidental by the end of the year to overhaul its Awali onshore oil field, according to the Gulf Arab state's top energy official. "We are still negotiating," Abdul-Hussein Mirza told Reuters.

GAZPROM NETHERLANDS B.V. and the Algerian State Oil and Gas Corporation (ASOGC) Sonatrach have signed an agreementfor the transfer of rights for hydrocarbon exploration and production in the onshore area El Assel located in the Berkine Basin of Algeria.

SUDAN HAS ANNOUNCED a new oilfield that will begin production in the Upper Nile state with a capacity of 50,000 bpd. The director of exploration at the Ministry of Energy and Mining, Azhari Abdullah, told reporters that the field, named Qamari, will be opened in March by Sudanese president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir.

CIRCLE HAS ANNOUNCED that the Al Amir SE-2X appraisal well has been drilled in the onshore North West Gemsa Concession in Egypt. Circle has confirmed a discovery in the Kareem Formation sandstones, with the well testing 41 degrees API oil and gas at sustained average rates of 5,785 bopd and 7.8 MMscfd using a 64/64" choke from the lower of two identified pay zones.

BG INTERNATIONAL OF the UK, US company, Anadarko Petroleum Corp., and Wintershall Holding AG's BASF SE of Germany are not planning to submit offers to develop Iraq's oil and gas fields announced in the first bidding round, an authorised oil ministry spokesman said.

IRAN AND CHINA have signed a US$1.76 billion deal for the initial development of Iran's North Azadegan oilfield, Iran's official IRNA news agency has reported. The deal was signed between the China National Petroleum Corp. and the National Iranian Oil Co.

ARAWAK HAS RESUMED oil production at its four operated fields in Kazakhstan. Arawak announced on December 5, 2008 that it had curtailed production at the fields following a significant deterioration in margins owing to high taxation and a material decline in world oil prices.