American International Petroleum Subsidiary Commences Inland Barge Operations.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 17, 1999--

American International Petroleum Corporation (Nasdaq NMS: AIPN) announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, American International Marine, Inc. (AIM), initiated operations of its inland barge, the Claudia G., upon certification by the United States Coast Guard on June 14, 1999.

AIM was established to own and operate barges to supply the Company's St. Marks, Florida retail distribution terminal with asphalt produced at the Lake Charles, Louisiana refinery, make deliveries to refinery customers throughout the Gulf Coast and lower Mississippi River and charter barges to third parties, when and if available. The Company anticipates realizing important cost savings and efficiencies by owning its own barges.

Claudia G., a 340-foot inland tank barge with a cargo capacity of over 3,000 short tons, has been fully certified for transporting asphalt and residual fuel oils throughout the Gulf Coast and lower Mississippi River.

Chairman and CEO Dr. George Faris said, "We anticipate American International Marine to operate as a profit center for the Company by generating revenues and realizing various cost efficiencies. AIM will allow our refinery operations to better manage inventories of asphalt products at Lake Charles, which will lower our transport costs and enable the Company to maximize revenues and operating margins. Owning our own barge fleet will also allow the Company to be more price competitive by guarantying on-time deliveries to customers. We anticipate the chartering business to be an important source of on-going revenues. AIM plans to acquire additional barges in the future as chartering and Company operations warrant."

American International Petroleum Corporation is a diversified petroleum company which, through various wholly owned subsidiaries, is involved in oil and gas exploration and development in Kazakhstan, and in refining, marketing and transportation of petroleum products in the United States.

Statements herein may be identified as forward-looking for purposes of safe harbor provisions under Section 21E of the SEC Act of 1934. Such statements relating to the Company's future business are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those statements, and other risks and factors, identified in the Company's SEC filings.