Drilling Report

Independent Resources PLC 11 December 2006 Drilling of well marks further step on planned coal bed methane project Independent Resources plc, the AIM-quoted natural gas storage and exploration company, has successfully completed drilling and logging a stratigraphic well to obtain detailed geological information on Italy's first coal bed methane ('CBM') prospect. The well reached a target depth of 345.2 metres below ground level and, as expected, encountered an approximately 6-metre thick coal seam at a depth of around 330 metres. The coal has been continuously cored and these coal samples are now being studied in a laboratory environment. The well will provide information on coal permeability, coal rank, gas content (m3/tonne coal) and gas composition. These are all important factors in assessing the attractiveness of the coal for production of CBM. The well location was chosen because the depth to the coal could be accurately predicted there. It is 600 metres away from the nearest mine tunnel, and at a relatively shallow depth, which means the generation of coal bed methane at this location would probably be less productive than might be achieved elsewhere in Independent Resources' Fiume Bruna licence area. The data collected by this well will nevertheless be very valuable ahead of IRG's planned commercial development of the methane reserves on its licence, which contains the 90 square-kilometre Fiume Bruna coal basin north of Grosseto in central Italy. Coal bed methane is almost pure methane produced directly from coal seams. Whilst many conventional oil and gas fields comprise trapped hydrocarbons generated by coal deposits, producing gas directly from coal is a very different technical and economic proposition. IRG was provisionally awarded the Fiume Bruna exploration licence from the Italian Government in June 2005. The licence covers an area of 267 km(2) and has very light work commitments. The new well is an important step in the staged appraisal of the licence which only commits IRG to undertake subsequent phases once it is satisfied with the results of the previous stage. For further information contact: Stephen Staley, Managing Director, Independent Resources plc: 01332 865 253 07771 838 753 Allan Piper, First City Financial Public Relations: 020 7436 7486 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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