Activity Update: China

RNS Number:5816N
Roc Oil Company Limited
15 June 2005





15 June 2005


                       ROC OIL COMPANY LIMITED ("ROC OIL")

                             STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE
                             ACTIVITY UPDATE: CHINA

Roc Oil advises that discussions are continuing with various government
authorities and other interested parties, with regard the Company's projects and
potential projects, in China.

The development of the Wei-12-8-West offshore oil field, in Block 22/12 in the
Beibu Gulf, continues to be the subject of close collaboration between Roc Oil
and the regional subsidiary of the China National Offshore Oil Company
("CNOOC"). In this regard, Roc Oil is acting as Operator of the Block 22/12
Joint Venture which also includes PetSec Energy Limited, Horizon Oil Limited and
Oil Australia Pty Limited, a subsidiary of First Australian Resources. In this
context, Roc Oil is finalising an Overall Development Plan which will be
submitted to the relevant government authorities by end July 2005 and which will
then be subject to further detailed discussion prior to a final development
decision being made prior to end October 2005. Planing is also continuing with
regard to the drilling of at least one exploration well in Block 22/12 before
end-2005, subject to a suitable rig being available.

With regard to potential new ventures in China, Roc Oil is continuing to
evaluate opportunities both offshore and also onshore. The onshore opportunity
is at Fushun, in Liaoning Province in northeastern China. Roc Oil has been in
discussions with relevant parties about opportunities centred on Fushun for more
than four years. The Fushun Mining Group ("FMG") is the key player in a
profitable and well established sub-sector of the Chinese energy industry based
at Fushun which produces oil from shale rock. During the current visit to
Australia by the Governor of Liaoning Province, which has a population of almost
50 million people, the Lord Mayor of Fushun and senior FMG executives, Roc Oil
signed a Letter of Intent with FMG which is designed to progress further ROC's
potential involvement with the oil business in this part of China.

Commenting on the progress of projects in China, Roc Oil's Chief Executive
Officer, Dr John Doran, stated that:

"Roc Oil is one of the very few independent western oil companies actively
operating in China. This is something that we have been doing continuously, in
one form or another, since 1998 when China's importance to the world economy was
not as widely recognised as it is now. During the time Roc Oil has been involved
in China we have learnt many lessons and never had a bad experience. One of the
lessons we have learnt is that it is easy for western companies and their
shareholders and other investors, to prematurely attach a high degree of
importance to each of the various milestones that all China-based projects must
pass before coming to fruition. During the last few working days Roc Oil has
been very pleased to pass a couple more of these milestones en-route to what it
hopes will be a number of profitable projects in China. However, in each case, a
lot more work needs to be done before we reach the end of the individual project
journeys."

John Doran                                or further information please contact:
Chief Executive Officer                                         Dr John Doran on
                                                            Tel: +61-2-8356-2000
                                                            Fax: +61-2-9380-2635
                                                     Email: jdoran@rocoil.com.au
                                                         Or visit ROC's website:
                                                               www.rocoil.com.au

                                                                   Dr Kevin Hird
                                            General Manager Business Development
                                                       Tel:  +44 (0)207 586 7935
                                                       Fax:  +44 (0)207 722 3919
                                                     Email:  khird@rocoil.com.au

                                                                    Nick Lambert
                                            Bell Pottinger Corporate & Financial
                                                       Tel:  +44 (0)207 861 3232



                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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