Imperial Petroleum Recovery Corporation Names Christopher DeClaire President and CEO.

Business/Energy Editors

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 14, 2003

Imperial Petroleum Recovery Corporation (IPRC) announced today the appointment of Christopher G. DeClaire as the company's new president & chief executive officer. Mr. DeClaire's appointment became effective on Jan. 1, 2003. He assumes the role of CEO from Henry Kartchner, who will remain chairman of the board for IPRC, and replaces C. Brent Kartchner as president. Brent Kartchner will continue to play a pivotal role at IPRC leading the company's research and development effort.

From October 2001 through December 2002, Mr. DeClaire was managing director of Odyssey Capital, LLC, a Houston-based company that he formed in 1999. While building Odyssey Capital, he worked with a number of companies to help them re-capitalize and enhance their management structures. Mr. DeClaire became involved with IPRC while at Odyssey Capital, and his vision and enthusiasm for the company led him to accept the position of president & CEO.

Mr. DeClaire graduated from Michigan State University in 1982 with a bachelor's degree in pre-law and a minor in accounting. Following graduation, he held various positions within the financial industry. In 1986, he founded Westbridge Securities, a financial investment boutique that provided seed capital to domestic and international companies. In 1989, Mr. DeClaire entered the staff leasing business and founded two companies, Enterprise Services Inc. in Michigan and OneSource Inc. in Texas. In 1995, Mr. DeClaire took on a partner and acquired SkillMaster Inc., a temporary staffing company. As chairman and CEO of SkillMaster, Mr. DeClaire grew the company's annual revenues from $5 million to more than $120 million over a three-year period. In 1998, he sold his interest in SkillMaster.

"Christopher brings to IPRC a wide breadth of experience in successfully growing small businesses," said Henry Kartchner, chairman, IPRC. "As IPRC's Microwave Separation Technology begins to penetrate multiple industries, Mr. DeClaire's strategic vision will help IPRC successfully commercialize this revolutionary technology."

"I see tremendous opportunities for IPRC and its patented Microwave Separation Technology," said Mr. DeClaire. "With relationships in place with leaders in the industries of energy refining as well as waste water treatment, IPRC has already laid the groundwork for marketing its technology and I look forward to building on those successes."

Mr. DeClaire is active in the Houston community. He serves as board president of the Children's Assessment Center, a public-private partnership responsible for coordinating with 17 governmental agencies to investigate, treat and counsel sexually abused children in Harris County. Mr. DeClaire is also currently chairman of the board of the University Club of Houston and an active supporter of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Mr. DeClaire and his wife, Arlene, have two sons, Alexander and Griffin.

IPRC is the leading provider of an innovative microwave technology designed to treat and eliminate hydrocarbon emulsions that are an ever increasing global problem faced by the world's governments and industries. IPRC's patented and proven Microwave Separation Technology (MST) provides a clean, cost effective and efficient solution for eliminating petroleum-generated emulsions that reduce production and create environmentally hazardous byproducts. IPRC is based in Houston, and is currently traded on the OTC Bulletin Board under the stock symbol IREC. To learn more about IPRC, visit the company's Web site at http://www.iprc.com.

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking. While these statements reflect the Company's beliefs, they are subject to uncertainties and risks that could cause actual results to differ materially.