Acquisition Completion

Tullow Oil PLC
14 February 2001


TULLOW OIL PLC

Completion of  Murdoch-Boulton Package Acquisition from BP
       
Tullow Oil Plc ('Tullow'), the independent UK oil and gas exploration,
development and production company, announces it has completed the purchase of
the Murdoch-Boulton Package, the first of two packages of North Sea gas assets
and related infrastructure which Tullow agreed to purchase from BP for a
maximum of £201m following BP's takeover of ARCO in April 2000.  This
acquisition, which was initially announced on 31 July 2000,  comprises 240bcf
of strongly cash generative mature production, 180bcf of underdeveloped
discoveries and substantial low risk exploration potential.

The Murdoch-Boulton Package in the Southern North Sea comprises interests in
three licences held by BP. The licences are situated in UKCS Quadrants 43 and
44 and contain two producing fields, two discoveries and a number of
exploration prospects and leads. 

The Murdoch field (in which Tullow now has an interest of 34.00 per cent.) is
the main producing asset. The Boulton field (in which Tullow now has an
interest of  9.50 per cent.) produces back to the Murdoch platform from a
single well.  The fields are produced through the Caister Murdoch System
(CMS), jointly owned by the original founder fields, Caister and Murdoch. The
Murdoch Package includes ARCO's 17 per cent ownership interest in the CMS. 
The Murdoch field came on production in 1993 and the remaining net proven and
probable reserves as at 1 January, 2000 are estimated to be 50.4 bcf.  A new
exploration well on the Murdoch area, known as the 'K' well,  spudded on 19
December and is currently in progress. 

The Boulton field lies to the west of Murdoch and commenced production in
1997.  The field is currently producing from one well through a minimum
facilities platform, and then by 10 inch pipeline to the Murdoch well head
platform.  The reserves from this field have recently been upgraded: net
proven and probable reserves as at 1 January, 2000 are estimated to be 10.3
bcf. 

The blocks surrounding the Murdoch and Boulton fields also contain a number of
undeveloped discoveries and exploration prospects, and Conoco, the operator
for CMS, is looking at ways to develop satellite fields in the CMS area under
a single unitised scheme, known as CMS III.  The Directors believe that this
scheme could represent a significant source of upside reserve and revenue
potential for the Murdoch area. 

The gas from the Murdoch and Boulton fields is sold under long-term contracts
to the Conoco Group and the TXU Group.  As a joint owner of the CMS, Tullow
will also receive also tariff income from the Boulton field and two other
fields, Schooner and Ketch, both operated by Shell U.K. Limited.

Tullow expects that the remaining portion of the acquisition of Assets from
BP, the Thames Hewett Package, will complete by the end of March.

Aidan Heavey, Managing Director of Tullow, commented:

'We are delighted to have concluded the first element of this acquisition. 
The Murdoch area offers an excellent mix of stable production on long-term
contracts and exciting exploration upside, as we hope  the K well will
demonstrate.  We believe the potential CMS III development will underline that
the Southern North Sea can be an efficient and profitable place to operate. 
This acquisition and the related cashflow will be used as the engine of our
future UK and international development and exploration activities.'

He added: 'We now aim to secure our medium term production growth primarily
through the undeveloped discoveries in the UK and at Espoir offshore Cote
d'Ivoire, our largest international development, as well as exploration close
to these assets.'


Further Information



Graham Martin           020 7389 0300         Legal and Commercial Director

Tom Hickey              020 7389 0300         Finance Director

John Lander             020 7849 5613         Managing Director
                                              Tullow Exploration Limited


Notes to Editors:

1. Tullow Oil plc is a UK-domiciled quoted company engaged in oil and gas
exploration, development and production.  

The Company has been an established upstream operation, for 14 years, being
active currently onshore UK and both onshore and offshore in other countries. 
Tullow's assets cover more than 30 licences in its countries of operation,
which are Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Cote d'Ivoire, Egypt, the United
Kingdom and Romania.

The Company's shares are listed on the Official Lists of the London and Irish
Stock Exchanges. The Company has been UK Registered since December 2000.

In the UK, Tullow operates in three areas: North Yorkshire, operating and
supplying gas to a power station; Lincolnshire, where oil is produced and sold
to a local refinery; and South Yorkshire, operating the facilities for a gas
storage project.

At the end of 1999, Tullow's reserves were 33.4 million barrels of liquids and
270 billion cubic feet of gas.

2. The purchase from BP is through two packages:

      BP's equity in the Murdoch and Boulton gas fields and the
      Caister-Murdoch System (the subject of this announcement): and
      BP's equity in the Thames gas field with surrounding satellites, the
      Hewett gas field with surrounding satellites, the associated pipeline
      and terminal interests (to be completed, and a further announcement will
      be made at that time).

3. Net BP production from the fields in the two packages to be purchased by
Tullow amounts to a current average of some 150 million cubic feet of gas a
day, with net proven and probable reserves at the end of 1999 of 242.6 billion
cubic feet.

4. On 31 July 2000 Tullow announced the purchase of this major package of
North Sea Production interests from BP Amoco Arco for a maximum consideration
of Stg £201m.  At the same time, it also announced a placing and open offer to
raise approximately £41.8m (net of expenses) and signed a loan agreement to
provide up to Stg £140m in bridge financing.  This Bridge facility has since
been replaced by a £125 million 5 year syndicated Borrowing Base Facility led
by CIBC World Markets and Bank of Scotland.