Director/PDMR Shareholding

Cairn Energy PLC
04 April 2008


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


                                                                    4 April 2008






                  CAIRN ENERGY PLC ('Cairn' or 'the Company')


 Interests of Directors/Persons Discharging Managerial Responsibility ('PDMRs')

                            in the Company's Shares


     Release of Shares under the Company's Long Term Incentive Plan (2002)





Cairn announces that on 3 April 2008 it was notified by the Trustee of the
Company's Employees' Share Trust ('the Trust') that a total of 46,800 Ordinary
Shares were released by the Trust on 2 April 2008 to the Executive Directors and
a PDMR of the Company under the Company's Long Term Incentive Plan 2002. The
shares were released following the expiry of the one year withholding period in
respect of the award made on 10 March 2004 (for which there was a three year
performance period).


Details of the shares released from the Trust are as follows:-

Director/PDMR                                          Number of Shares released
                                                       following the expiry of 
                                                       withholding period

Sir Bill Gammell, Chief Executive                          12,600

Dr Mike Watts, Exploration Director                         7,600

Malcolm Thoms, Chief Operating Officer                      7,600

Phil Tracy, Engineering & Operations Director               6,400

Jann Brown, Finance Director                                4,200

Simon Thomson, Legal & Commercial Director                  4,200

Richard Heaton, Head of Exploration                         4,200



Share Dealings


Cairn also announces that it has received notifications of the following
dealings in the Company's shares by Directors / a PDMR:-


(i) On 3 April 2008 the following Directors/PDMR sold a total of 380,463
Ordinary Shares at the following prices per Share:-

Director/PDMR                  Number of Shares Sold     Sale Price per Share

Norman Murray, Chairman                   81,250                    £28.61

Todd Hunt, Non-Executive
Director                                  10,156                  US$56.70

Sir Bill Gammell, Chief
Executive                                 50,046 1                £28.5929

Dr Mike Watts, Exploration
Director                                 168,027          128,027 @ £28.58
                                                         40,000 @ £28.5929
Malcolm Thoms, Chief Operating
Officer                                    7,600                  £28.5929

Phil Tracy, Engineering &
Operations Director                        6,400                  £28.5929

Jann Brown, Finance Director               1,722                  £28.5929

Simon Thomson, Legal &
Commercial Director                        4,200                  £28.5929

Richard Heaton, Head of
Exploration                               51,062           45,000 @ £28.58
                                                          6,062 @ £28.5929


1 In addition to the shares sold, Sir Bill Gammell today gifted 13,000 Ordinary
Shares to charity.


(ii) The following spouses of Directors / a PDMR today bought a total of 213,027
Ordinary Shares at the following prices per Share:-

Name of Spouse/Director                Number of Shares    Purchase Price Per
                                       Purchased           Share
Mrs P Murray / Norman Murray
(Chairman)                                        40,000              £28.7899

Mrs J Watts / Mike Watts (Exploration
Director)                                        128,027              £28.5825

Mrs J Heaton / Richard Heaton (Head of
Exploration)                                      45,000              £28.5825





Following this announcement the relevant Directors'/PDMR's beneficial interests
in the Ordinary Shares of the Company are as follows:-

Director   Previous       New      % Issued Number  Outstanding Awards   Outstanding Awards
 /PDMR                Shareholding  Share     of      under 2002 LTIP      Under 2006 LTIP
                                   Capital   Share
                                            Options
         Shareholding
                                                         Tier  Tier Two   Cairn    Capricorn
                                                          One             India      Units
                                                                          Units
                                                          
Norman       81,250       40,000    0.031       0         0         0          0          0
Murray

Todd         28,436       18,280    0.014       0         0         0          0          0
Hunt

Sir Bill
Gammell     500,000      377,500 2  0.289       0    83,500    97,800    515,118    897,196

Dr Mike     200,000      160,000    0.122       0    58,300    89,000    187,803    981,308
Watts

Malcolm      37,600       30,000    0.023       0    52,100    78,000    482,923    280,374
Thoms

Phil          6,400            0        0       0    50,200    59,500    321,949    560,748
Tracy

Jann         32,200       30,478    0.023       0    33,900    31,300    268,291    467,290
Brown

Simon         6,637        2,437    0.002       0    34,600    32,900    134,145    700,935
Thomson

Richard      52,918       46,856    0.036       0    33,900    37,800    134,145    700,935
Heaton


2 In addition to the Ordinary Shares sold and gifted to charity, the new
shareholding reflects the fact that persons formerly connected with Sir Bill
Gammell no longer remain so connected.



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