Benton Oil and Gas Company's Russian Projects Not Hurt by Current Russian Market Turmoil.CARPINTERIA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 19, 1998--Benton Oil and Gas Company (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :BNO BNO Beroepsorganisatie Nederlandse Ontwerpers BNO Boys' Night Out (band) BNO Boyz Nite Out BNO Big Night Out (band) BNO Bau- und Nutzungsordnung BNO Baksan Neutrino Observatory ) today said that the de facto [Latin, In fact.] In fact, in deed, actually. This phrase is used to characterize an officer, a government, a past action, or a state of affairs that must be accepted for all practical purposes, but is illegal or illegitimate. devaluation devaluation, decreasing the value of one nation's currency relative to gold or the currencies of other nations. It is usually undertaken as a means of correcting a deficit in the balance of payments. of the ruble is not expected to have a negative impact on its Russian operations. A.E. Benton, Chairman, President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Benton Oil and Gas, stated, "Our two joint ventures are proceeding as planned despite the Russian market turmoil. This week's ruble devaluation will have little impact on our ongoing operations, and we do not anticipate any negative effects in the future. In fact, the near term impact on our drilling and production economics will be positive, since generally we receive U.S. dollars for our produced oil yet pay our development and lifting costs in rubles." "Some industries will undoubtedly be hurt by the devaluation, especially those that sell goods exclusively to Russian buyers. Other industries, with significant exports, including the oil industry, will be the beneficiaries of this devaluation. In fact, the Russian oil industry wasone of the chief proponents of this move." Benton Oil and Gas has a long history of managing its projects through periods of economic volatility. The Company's Venezuelan project, for example, maintained continuous operations through a banking system collapse, currency devaluation Currency devaluation A deliberate downward adjustment in the official exchange rates established, or pegged, by a government against a specified standard, such as another currency or gold. and change of government, and continues to flourish today. "One of the major strengths of our Company is management's ability to navigate through local economic uncertainties. We continue to have confidence in Russia's oil industry and economy over the long term," Benton added. Benton owns a 34% interest in Geoilbent, an oil development and production joint venture in West Siberia. The Company recently announced the closing of its acquisition of a 40% equity interest in Severneftegaz, a Russian Open Join Stock Company which owns the exclusive rights to evaluate, develop and produce natural gas, condensate condensate, matter in the form of a gas of atoms, molecules, or elementary particles that have been so chilled that their motion is virtually halted and as a consequence they lose their separate identities and merge into a single entity. , and oil reserves Oil reserves refer to portions of oil in place that are claimed to be recoverable under economic constraints. Oil in the ground is not a "reserve" unless it is claimed to be economically recoverable, since as the oil is extracted, the cost of recovery increases incrementally in a large acreage block adjacent to the Urengoy field, Russia's largest producing natural gas field. Benton Oil and Gas Company, headquartered in Carpinteria, Calif. is an independent oil and gas exploration and development company with operations worldwide. This press release may contain "Forward-Looking Statements forward-looking statement A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections. " within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this release may constitute forwarding-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Actual results may differ materially from the Company's expectations due to changes in operating performance, project schedules, oil and gas demands and prices, and other technical and economical factors.
CONTACT: Benton Oil & Gas Company, Carpinteria
Linda Blount-Strauss, 805/566-5600
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