Noble Energy Offers Results on Gunflint Appraisal

Noble Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NBL) todayannounced that the second appraisal well at Gunflint successfully encountered109 feet of net pay within the primary reservoir targets.  Results ofdrilling, wireline logs and reservoir data have confirmed an estimated grossresource range(1) of 65 to 90 million barrels of oil equivalent in the primarystructure, which was in line with Company expectations.  The MississippiCanyon 992 #1 well, located one mile west of the original discovery well, wasdrilled to a total depth of approximately 32,800 feet in a water depth of6,100 feet.  Commercial hydrocarbons were not encountered in the deeperexploration objective.  Additional exploration potential remains in anadjacent three-way structure to the north, a candidate for future explorationfollowing development of the confirmed resources. Once operations are completed, the well will be suspended for future use.  Thenet cost of drilling the lower exploration zone was approximately $15 million,which will be expensed in the second quarter of 2013.Susan Cunningham, Noble Energy's Senior Vice President Deepwater Gulf ofMexico, West Africa and Frontier Regions, commented, "Our appraisal program atGunflint solidifies our plans for a subsea tieback development, with sanctionplanned for later this year.  Along with our Big Bend discovery, we now havetwo major projects in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico targeting first productionat the end of 2015.  These developments represent significant value to ouroverall portfolio."Noble Energy plans to move the drilling rig to Troubadour, a low-riskamplitude prospect offsetting the Big Bend discovery, over the next severalweeks.  The well is expected to reach total depth late in the third quarter.