21 November 2006

Doubles Oil & Gas Lease Area in USA

Irvine Energy plc (AIM: IVE), the AIM listed oil & gas exploration company, announces the acquisition of a 75% working interest in a further 30,985 acres of oil and gas leases in Butler and Cowley Counties, Kansas, USA, for a cash consideration of US$$0.925 million.

The acquisition is part of Irvine's lease acquisition, exploration and development programme in respect to the Chattanooga Shale ("the Project") in Kansas, in joint venture with the Metro Energy Group. The primary focus of the Project is shale gas exploration and development, within an Area of Mutual Interest ("AMI") of approximately seven million acres covering the Chattanooga Shale.

Following the acquisition, the Company has a 75% working interest in approximately 61,000 acres of oil and gas leases within the AMI, more than double the initial interest in 30,000 acres acquired on 1st November 2006.

Irvine Chairman, Michael Frayne, said: "The Company is very pleased with the progress of the Project leasing programme, with the acquisition of over 60,000 acres in such a short time frame being a significant achievement. The Project is well advanced towards the Stage 1 objective of acquiring a strategic significant land position over the Chattanooga Shale of 100,000 acres."

For further information please contact:

Irvine Energy plc
Michael Frayne, Tel: +44 (0) 207 016 9579

Nabarro Wells & Co Ltd
Hugh Oram, Tel: +44 (0) 207 710 7400

St Brides Media & Finance
Hugo de Salis, Tel: +44 (0) 207 242 4477

St Brides Media & Finance
Felicity Edwards, Tel: +44 (0) 207 242 4477

Notes to Editors:

The Project

The primary focus of the Project is shale gas exploration and development of the Chattanooga Shale within the AMI. The Metro Group, which has experience in shale gas development, will be the operator of the Project and will hold a 25 per cent. working interest in the Project.

Irvine and the Metro Group aim to build a large strategic acreage position over the Chattanooga Shale, with a target acquisition of interests in 100,000 to 200,000 acres of oil and gas leases within the AMI. In conjunction with acquiring interests in additional oil and gas leases within the AMI, Irvine and the Metro Group will undertake three dimensional ("3-D") seismic studies and drilling programmes to establish the economic parameters of the Chattanooga Shale gas formations. The Directors believe this exploration programme has the potential to generate conventional oil and gas targets for testing, with the possibility of early cash flow from the conventional targets and the shale gas wells.

Stage 1 of the Project plan is to acquire interests in 100,000 acres of oil and gas leases (including the initial leases comprised in the Acquisitions) within the AMI and to undertake 3-D seismic studies. This is expected to be completed within 12 months. Stage 2 of the Project plan, which will be financed through a further fundraising, is to acquire interests in an additional 100,000 acres of oil and gas leases within the AMI, to carry out further 3-D seismic studies and to undertake vertical and horizontal drilling programmes.

The Project AMI covers 11 contiguous counties in Kansas which cover the Chattanooga Shale. The Project AMI covers an area of approximately seven million acres. The AMI has a history of prolific oil and gas production from a number of formations and has significant infrastructure in place, including gas pipeline networks. Over the past two decades, there has been limited application of the technologies proposed under the Project, including 3D seismic and horizontal drilling.

The Operator

The Metro Group has oil and gas operations in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Kansas and has significant in-house experience and expertise in geology, prospect generation, field operations, and oil and gas marketing. The principals of the Metro Group have over 40 years combined experience in the oil and gas industry. The Metro Group has a proven track record in shale gas development, including an operating agreement in the Woodford Shale gas play in Oklahoma with Devon Energy, one of the largest shale gas developers in the USA.

USA Shale Gas

Organic rich shales are hydrocarbon source rocks, which are pervasive across large geographic areas and not confined to limited traps or structures. These shales typically have lower gas flow rates than conventional reservoirs, but tend to produce over longer periods. Recent technological advancements, including fracture stimulation combined with horizontal drilling, and higher gas prices have enabled economic natural gas production from extensive shale basins. This has resulted in the development of the multi-billion dollar shale gas industry in the USA, one of the fastest growing energy sectors in onshore USA.