Brigham Exploration Announces Major Field Discovery.

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 15, 1999--

Brigham Exploration Company (Nasdaq:BEXP) today announced that it has drilled, tested and is currently completing a significant Lower Vicksburg well in its 57 square mile Diablo 3-D Seismic Project in Brooks County, Texas.

The Palmer State No. 2 well was spud in October 1999 as an offset to Brigham's late 1998 Palmer State No. 1 exploratory discovery well, confirming the discovery of Brigham's Home Run Field.

The Palmer State No. 2 well was drilled to a depth of 12,500 feet and encountered 210 net feet of pay in four Lower Vicksburg sand intervals. The lowest identified pay interval (29 net feet) tested naturally at a flow rate of 3.2 MMcf of natural gas and 250 barrels of condensate with a flowing tubing pressure of 5,500 pounds per square inch ("psi").

Following fracture stimulation of this lower zone, production rates have increased to 7.3 MMcf of natural gas and 300 barrels of condensate with flowing tubing pressure of 6,600 psi. Brigham plans to temporarily abandon this lower sand to facilitate the testing and fracture stimulation of the remaining upper three sand intervals (181 net feet). Upon completion of testing and stimulation, the Company intends to commingle all four zones at an estimated production rate of 18 MMcf of natural gas and 700 barrels of condensate per day. Completion operations are likely to be completed by mid-January 2000.

Brigham's 3-D interpretative mapping indicates that the Home Run Field reservoirs have over 500 feet of relief and cover approximately 1,100 acres with estimated gross reserves ranging from a minimum of 80 Bcfe to over 200 Bcfe. Brigham operates the Palmer State No. 2 well and has retained a 34% working and 27% net revenue interest in the Diablo Project. The Company is currently formulating a multi-well drilling plan for the development of the Home Run Field. This program is expected to include the drilling of a minimum of three field delineation wells during the next twelve months, with full development ultimately requiring as many as fifteen wells.

Bud Brigham, the Company's Chairman, CEO and President, stated, "This is a major discovery for our company, which represents the crowning achievement in a year of successful drilling. The Home Run Field should provide us with a significant developmental drilling program for several years, substantially impacting our proved reserves, net production and cash flow.

"The Home Run Field discovery illustrates the value that exists in our vast prospect inventory. While our historical results demonstrate our ability to continually grow our Company's reserves through the drill-bit, this most recent discovery also confirms our belief that our 3-D seismic-based prospect inventory and drilling program can produce major field discoveries within proven natural gas and oil producing trends."

The 1,100 acre Home Run Field is located upthrown from two large, untested 3-D delineated Vicksburg structures (Mariposa and Floyd) which cover approximately 1,200 acres. Brigham currently plans to spud an exploratory test of the estimated 1,000 acre Mariposa structure late in the first quarter of 2000, and the Company believes that its Home Run Field discovery has significantly enhanced the prospectiveness of this large structural closure.

Bud Brigham further indicated, "We are also excited about drilling the Mariposa and Floyd closures, which are related to the Home Run Field in that they are adjacent faulted closures on the same large faulted anticlinal structure. These potential traps provide our company with the potential to double the reserves we've delineated with the Home Run discovery. The Mariposa and Floyd structures are two examples of additional high potential 3-D prospects that we have in inventory, several of which should be drilled next year."

About Brigham Exploration

Brigham Exploration Company (www.bexp3d.com) is an independent exploration and production company that applies 3-D seismic imaging and other advanced technologies to systematically explore and develop onshore domestic natural gas and oil provinces.

Forward-Looking Statements Disclosure

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements that are based upon current expectations. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward looking statements include risks inherent in exploratory drilling activities, the timing and extent of changes in commodity prices, unforeseen engineering and mechanical or technological difficulties in drilling wells, availability of drilling rigs, land issues, federal and state regulatory developments and other risks more fully described in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.