Operational Update

Cardinal Resources plc
16 January 2006


CARDINAL RESOURCES PLC OPERATIONAL AND FINANCING UPDATE

LONDON - Monday, 16th January 2006

Cardinal Resources plc (AIM:CDL) ('Cardinal' or 'The Company'), an independent
oil and gas production and exploration company operating in Ukraine, today
announces an update on operations since listing on AIM in April 2005.

Operational Highlights

   •20 wells in production and two workovers completed, with a further four
    workovers currently in progress
   •Acquisition of Rudis Drilling Company (Rudis) announced on 27th October
    2005
      •Three licence areas and a Joint Activity Agreement (JAA) with
       Ukrgazvydobuvannya (Ukrgaz), a subsidiary of Naftogaz Ukraine
      •Reserves increased by nearly 50% to 27.5 MMBOE and production levels
       doubled
   •Construction underway on one new flowline in the Kulickykhin field
    (within the Ukrgaz JAA) to tie in one of the existing wells; completion
    expected Q1 2006
   •Exploratory well currently drilling in the Dubrivska licence area (well #
    2); completion expected Q1 2006
   •Three further wells (Bytkiv #1007, BC #3 and NY #4) expected to commence
    drilling in Q1 2006.

At 30th November 2005 reserves stood at 27.5 MMBOE and average daily production
was 1,172 boepd.

A summary of the work to date (15th April - 30th November 2005) is detailed
below:

                                RC Field  Bytkiv Field  Rudis Assets    TOTAL
Workovers completed                 1         1             0             2
Workovers in progress               1         1             2             4
Workovers pending                   2        10             2            14
New wells currently drilling        0         0             1             1
New drilling to commence Q1         0         1             2             3
Flowlines in progress             N/A       N/A             1             1
Producing wells                     5        12             3            20

Financing
Following the financing by Silverpoint Finance in December 2005 of US$38
million, Cardinal is currently in the process of negotiating the reinstatement
of its net profit interest in the RC Field from 14.9% to 45%.

Robert J. Bensh, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cardinal said, 'With
the necessary funds now in place, our first priority for 2006 is to restore our
position in the RC Field which will provide a considerable boost to reserves and
production, and significantly increase Cardinal's footprint in Ukraine.'

Commenting on the Ukraine gas price he continued, 'I maintain my view, based on
the trends we have experienced so far, that domestic gas prices will continue to
increase, with positive implications for Cardinal. Since the IPO in April 2005
we have already experienced a 30% rise in the average sales price of our gas.

'In light of the recent disruption in gas supplies from Russia and the increase
in imported gas prices, there is an even more pressing need now for Ukraine to
attract Western technology and increase foreign direct investment in the energy
sector to increase domestic production. Cardinal's existing presence in the
country means that it is well positioned to take advantage of these
opportunities and pursue further acquisitions and farm-ins with local entities.'

###

For further information please contact:

Cardinal Resources             Parkgreen Communications
Kate Spiro                     Justine Howarth / Victoria Thomas
[phone]           [phone]
[e-mail]         [e-mail]

Notes to Editor

Cardinal Resources plc
Cardinal Resources plc is an independent oil and gas production and exploration
company with assets in Ukraine. Cardinal is an experienced operator in the
country focused on expanding its existing operations through the farm-in or
acquisition of additional upstream oil and gas assets that can be further
developed through the application of modern technology and expertise.

Rudivsko-Chernovozavodske (RC) Field
Rudivsko-Chernovozavodske is a large under-developed gas field (1.54 TCF
original gas in place), located in the Dnieper-Donets basin, 200km east of Kiev
in the Poltava Oblast. Cardinal has a Joint Activity Agreement (JAA) with a
subsidiary of Ukrnafta for production and further development.

Bytkiv-Babchenske (Bytkiv) Field
Bytkiv-Babchenske is an oil field, located in the Carpathian fold belt, 45km
south-west of Ivano-Frankivsk in the Nadvirna Oblast. Cardinal has a 45%
interest through UkrCarpatOil, a Joint Venture (JV) with Ukrnafta, to operate
and develop the field.

The following assets were acquired as part of the Rudis Drilling Company
transaction:

Bilousivsko-Chornukhinska (BC) Licence
Bilousivsko-Chornukhinska is a producing gas-condensate licence in the
Dnieper-Donets basin, owned and operated by Cardinal.

North Yablunivska (NY) Licence
North Yablunivska is a producing gas-condensate licence in the Dnieper-Donets
basin, owned and operated by Cardinal.

Dubrivska (DB) Licence
Cardinal is currently drilling an exploration well as part of the JAA with
Ukrgazvydobuvannya.

Ukrgazvydobuvannya JAA #429
Cardinal has a 50% percent interest in five wells in three fields in the
Dnieper-Donets Basin under a JAA with Ukrgazvydobuvannya.

This release may contain certain forward-looking statements. These statements
relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's
expectations regarding Cardinal's growth, results of operations, performance and
business prospects and opportunities. Such forward-looking statements reflect
management's current beliefs, are based on information currently available to
management and are based on reasonable assumptions as of this date. No
assurance, however, can be given that the expectations will be achieved. A
number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the
projections, anticipated results or other expectations expressed in this
release. While Cardinal makes these forward-looking statements in good faith,
neither Cardinal, nor its directors and management, can guarantee that the
anticipated future results will be achieved.



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