Directorate Change

Cairn Energy PLC
08 November 2004


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                                                 8 November 2004

                           Cairn Energy PLC ('Cairn')

                   Appointment of New Non-Executive Director

Cairn Energy PLC, has appointed Andrew Shilston, the Finance Director at
Rolls-Royce plc, as a Non-Executive Director with effect from 8 November 2004.

Andrew Shilston MA ACA MCT, who is 49, is a chartered accountant and has been
the Finance Director of Rolls-Royce plc since 2003 having joined the company in
the previous year.

Prior to that, during the period 1993-2002 he was the Finance Director of
Enterprise Oil Plc having joined Enterprise in 1984. He also acted as a
Non-Executive Director of AEA Technology Plc from 1996 until July 2004. Andrew
attended Oxford University, where he received an MA in Engineering Science in
1977. After training as an accountant he joined BP as a financial analyst.

He will join Cairn's Audit Committee on appointment and will act as Chairman of
the Audit Committee following completion of the 2004 statutory accounts.

Norman Murray, Chairman of Cairn, said:

'We are delighted that Andrew Shilston has agreed to join the Cairn Board. His
significant financial and commercial experience within our industry will be of
great benefit to the Board.'

Andrew Shilston said:

'I'm pleased to accept this role with Cairn Energy at a time when the company is
growing and facing fascinating challenges in the months and years ahead as it
builds on its discoveries in South Asia.'


Enquiries:-

Cairn Energy PLC:
General Enquiries
Bill Gammell, Chief Executive                          Tel: [phone]
Analysts
Kevin Hart, Finance Director                           Tel: [phone]
Journalists                                            Tel: [phone]
David Nisbet, Head of Group Communications

Brunswick Group Limited:
Patrick Handley, Catherine Hicks, Mark Antelme         Tel: [phone]



Notes to Editors

   •There are no additional matters which require to be disclosed for the
    purposes of paragraph 6.F.2(a)-(g) of the Listing Rules.

   •The appointment is effective from today 8 November 2004.

   •Andrew Shilston was born in Abingdon. He is married with three children.

   •Andrew is a member of the Association of Corporate Treasurers and the
    Institution of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

   •Cairn now has six non-executive directors. There are five executive
    directors including the chief executive.

   •Cairn Energy, Europe's largest independent oil company, has so far
    invested $1.9 billion in South Asia in the last decade along with its joint
    venture partners.

   •Cairn focuses on the geographic region of South Asia, where the Group
    holds material exploration and production positions in both west and east
    India and in Bangladesh along with new exploration rights in Northern India
    and Nepal.

   •This focus on South Asia has already resulted in a number of oil and gas
    discoveries. In particular the company made a significant discovery in
    Rajasthan in the North West of India at the beginning of the year.

   •The Mangala discovery in the Thar desert of the North West Indian state
    has an estimated one billion barrels of oil in the ground according to
    Degolyer & MacNaughton, the oil reserve specialist.

   •The Mangala and N-A fields are planned to start production in the final
    quarter of 2007 producing between 60,000 and 100,000 barrels per day.

   •India currently imports 2 million barrels of oil a day. It produces
    650,000 barrels a day itself of which 50,000 comes from the Cairn Ravva
    field.



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