Conoco Announces Economic and Environmental Project for Ponca City Refinery.

Business/Energy Editors

PONCA CITY, Okla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 11, 2000

Conoco Inc. (NYSE:COCA)(NYSE:COCB) today said it will increase the sulfur recovery capacity of the company's refinery here by 50 percent to improve economics and reduce emissions.

The $22 million sulfur recovery project is a joint effort by Conoco and the adjacent Jupiter Tessender/Kerley Ponca City sulfur plant, of which Conoco is a 50 percent joint-venture partner.

Conoco said the project would increase the refinery's capacity to process lower-cost sour crude oils while reducing sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions.

"Increasing the refinery's sulfur recovery capacity will allow us to take full advantage of recent pipeline projects that give us better access to Canadian sour crude oil," said Mike Fretwell, general manager for Conoco's mid-continent business unit. "Our refinery becomes more competitive, and we continue our commitment of environmental stewardship," he emphasized.

Conoco is a major, integrated energy company active in more than 40 countries.

This release contains forward-looking statements about Conoco's operations and business plans. These statements are not guarantees of future performance, involve certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict, and are based upon assumptions as to future events that may not prove accurate. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed herein. Among the factors that could cause such differences are technical difficulties; changes in crude oil and natural gas prices; changes in anticipated construction and manufacturing costs; political events; and other matters detailed in Conoco's publicly available filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.