Forcenergy announces agreement to acquire all outstanding stock of Great Western Resources Inc

Business Wire, Dec 12, 1996

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 12, 1996--Forcenergy Inc (NASDAQ:FGAS) announced Thursday that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire all of the outstanding stock of Great Western Resources Inc. for approximately $48 million.

Great Western has oil and gas operations located primarily in the onshore Gulf Coast regions of Louisiana and Texas and offshore Gulf of Mexico. Great Western also has a 20% interest in an exploration concession in Peru. As of Sept. 30, 1996, Great Western had total proved reserves of approximately 33.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalents. Great Western's current net production is approximately 1,300 barrels of oil per day and 14,000 Mcf of natural gas per day. In addition, Great Western has interests in several promising exploration prospects, including several salt dome plays utilizing extensive 3-D seismic data in South Louisiana covering over 78,000 gross acres.

Stig Wennerstrom, Forcenergy's President and CEO, stated that: "We are excited about this acquisition as it will add to our onshore Gulf Coast production and prospect portfolio. We are acquiring interesting prospects along with quality producing assets with upside potential and talented technical personnel. The Company expects to achieve significant operating cost savings by integrating Great Western's South Marsh Island 18 Block operations with Forcenergy's adjacent South Marsh Island 6/10/11/19/285 complex, the site of a recent significant discovery."

Forcenergy Inc is an independent oil and gas company engaged in the development, exploration, acquisition and production of domestic oil and natural gas properties.

Certain statements in this news release regarding future expectations and plans for future activities may be regarded as "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the Securities Litigation Reform Act. They are subject to various risks, such as financial market conditions, operating hazards, drilling risks, and the inherent uncertainties in interpreting engineering data relating to underground accumulations of oil and gas, as well as other risks discussed in detail in the Company's SEC filings, including the Annual Report and Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 1995. Actual results may vary materially.

CONTACT: Forcenergy Inc

J. Russell Porter

E. Joseph Grady

305/856-8500