Director Shareholding

Sterling Energy PLC
24 April 2003

               Sterling Energy plc ('Sterling' or the 'Company')

         Distribution of Shares and Resultant Directors' Shareholdings

The Company was informed yesterday that Sterling Limited Partnership, has, as
was envisaged at the time of the acquisition of Sterling Energy Limited in
October 2002, now completed the distribution of its net assets to its underlying
partners, including its entire holding of 187,000,000 ordinary shares of 1p each
in the Company ('Ordinary Shares'), representing 52.9% of the issued share
capital. Consequently, Sterling Limited Partnership no longer has an interest in
the Ordinary Shares of the Company.

As part of the Distribution, the interest of certain directors in the issued
share capital is now:


Name                                              No. of Ordinary Shares               % of Ordinary Share capital

Richard O'Toole, non-executive chairman                 18,711,039                                5.29
Harry Wilson, Chief Executive Officer                   23,149,544                                6.54
(note 1)
Nigel Quinton, Technical & Operations                   14,977,469                                4.23
Director (note 2)
Graeme Thomson, Finance Director                        13,024,784                                3.68

Note 1:     The interest disclosed includes 14,603,254 Ordinary Shares held by
Roselea Limited, a company of which Harry Wilson has a 26% interest and is a
director.

Note 2: The interest disclosed includes 6,947,295 Ordinary Shares held by QX
Energy Limited, a company wholly owned by Mr Quinton and his family.

24 April 2003

Enquiries:

Harry Wilson, Sterling Energy plc                 01582 463 141

Graeme Thomson, Sterling Energy plc               01582 463 141

Chris Callaway, Evolution Beeson Gregory          020 7488 4040


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