Shareholders' Update: Jul-Oct

Roc Oil Company Limited
19 November 2004





19 November 2004


                         ROC OIL COMPANY LIMITED (ROC)
                             STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE
                   SHAREHOLDERS' UPDATE: JULY - OCTOBER 2004
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Under separate cover, ROC is mailing out to all of its shareholders a hard copy
of its 'Shareholders' Update' in accordance with the Company's practice of
maintaining a maximum level of direct communication with all shareholders.

Most of the Shareholders' Update is based upon information already released by
ROC, including the Company's Report on Activities for the Quarter ended
30 September 2004 released on 29 October 2004. However, the update also provides
some new financial information for the nine month period to 30 September 2004
and additional commentary on the Company's activities.

An A4 copy of the Shareholders' Update is attached.


Bruce Clement
Chief Operating Officer



For further information please contact:
Dr John Doran on [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
or visit ROC's website: www.rocoil.com.au

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Roc Oil Company Limited (ROC)
ABN 32 075 965 856
Level 14, 1 Market Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Web: www.rocoil.com.au
Email: [e-mail] 19 November 2004
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                   SHAREHOLDERS' UPDATE: JULY - OCTOBER 2004

SUMMARY

During the September Quarter and the subsequent month, ROC, along with most of
the rest of the industry, was firing on all cylinders. A new field discovery and
successful appraisal well offshore Mauritania; continuing progress towards
development of oilfields offshore Australia, Mauritania, China and in the UK
North Sea, together with a ground-breaking agreement to start exploration work
onshore Angola and a successful listing on AIM in London, coincided with record
oil and gas prices which generated $8 million revenue for ROC.
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                                   KEY POINTS


• US$13.6 million debt was repaid in July leaving ROC debt free and with cash 
assets of $90 million at 30 September 2004.

• Production of 2,741 BOEPD was down 11% on the previous quarter, largely due to
scheduled annual maintenance shut down at the third party owned gas processing 
plant.

• Revenue of $8 million was down 5% for the same reasons as the decline in 
production, although the decline in revenue was mitigated by higher gas prices.

• A two vessel drilling programme commenced offshore Mauritania which will 
result in 21 wells being drilled during late 2004 and early 2005.

• The Tevet-1 exploration well offshore Mauritania encountered a significant oil
and gas accumulation which is likely to be regarded as a potential candidate for
development via a subsea tie back to the Chinguetti Field.

• The Tiof-3 appraisal well offshore Mauritania intersected a 134m gross oil 
column, 4.2km west of the Tiof-1 discovery well and 3.6km east of the first Tiof
appraisal well.

• Development of the Chinguetti Oil and Gas Field offshore Mauritania continued,
as the Cliff Head Oil Field offshore Australia moved towards a Final Investment 
Decision at the end of January 2005. Offshore China and in the UK North Sea the 
Wei 12-8 and Blane oil fields are both the subject of predevelopment studies.

• Planning was initiated for up to four exploration wells and two Cliff Head 
early development wells scheduled to be drilled in ROC's permits in the offshore
Perth Basin commencing December 2004, subject to rig availability.

• Plans for drilling the wildcat Errington-1 well onshore UK came to fruition 
during the Quarter, ahead of a 6 November 2004 commencement date.

• On 6 September 2004, ROC shares were listed on AIM in London marking a 
potentially significant expansion of the Company's shareholder base.

• On 26 October 2004, ROC agreed to activate its Production Sharing Agreement, 
onshore Angola, thereby ending a 32 year hiatus in exploration.


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                            OTHER FINANCIAL DETAILS

ROC's unaudited $16.8 million loss after tax for the nine months to 30 September
2004 compares to a profit of $1.2 million for the corresponding period last
year. The loss includes $15.4 million of exploration expenditure written off,
which comprises capitalised expenditure in the Humber Basin onshore UK for
licences in which no further exploration activity is anticipated as well as $5.6
million exploration expense relating mainly to dry holes drilled in China and
expenditure incurred in Angola prior to the PSA being triggered, offset by a tax
credit of $1.2 million, which is a result of the release of deferred income tax
liability in relation to the exploration expensed and written off in the UK.

Exploration and appraisal expenditure year to date totals $17.4 million. Major
expenditures include the Front End Engineering Design for Cliff Head ($2.7
million), three exploration and appraisal wells in the Beibu Gulf, China ($5.2
million), 3D seismic and commencement of exploration and appraisal drilling
offshore Mauritania in September ($3.8 million) and the Old Hills exploration
well, onshore UK ($2.4 million).

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                                  CEO'S REPORT

It's hard not to be upbeat if you're an oil company in this market. After a
lengthy period in the wings most participants in the sector moved towards centre
stage during the period under review. Record product prices are driving a
booming market. A rising tide is carrying most oil and gas stocks higher and ROC
is no exception.

Since the beginning of July 2004, ROC's share price has risen 25% to a record
closing high of $2.04. In a little over a year, the Company's market
capitalisation has increased by approximately 200%, with the help of a
substantial Rights Issue in 2Q2004. Shareholders who took up their rights in
April 2004 have seen their investment increase by more than 40% during the
following five months. As much as we would like to put it all down to good
management and good drilling results, the fact is that record oil and gas prices
have transformed the sector.

Many industry participants and observers claim that the current market sentiment
is the best they have experienced. This raises the obvious question: is this as
good as it gets? In ROC's case, we think there is a very good chance that things
will get even better. This is not a casual comment but one that is grounded in
events which are already underway within the Company's portfolio, as detailed
elsewhere in this review. The portfolio is evolving quite nicely at a time when
small independent companies with broad spreads of international oil and gas
properties at various stages of exploration, appraisal and development are
attracting more and more investor attention. That attention is all the more
acute if the portfolio comes complete with an active drilling programme. In
ROC's case, up to 15 exploration and appraisal wells, two appraisal/development
wells at Cliff Head and staged drilling in relation to 12 Chinguetti development
wells, all scheduled for the five months from end October 2004, certainly falls
within the definition of an active drilling programme.

The collective industry experience of ROC's seven person management team
approximates to 150 man years. This experience, which has enabled the Company to
manage market and industry downturns in the past, is no less important in these
more upbeat times. In fact, there is a compelling argument that well-earned
corporate scar tissue is even more crucial in the current oil price climate
because it allows the Company to keep its feet firmly on the ground even as oil
prices soar. That is why the best thing for ROC shareholders is for management
to run the Company as if oil was headed back to US$15/barrel.

                                                                   Dr John Doran
                                                         Chief Executive Officer
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Roc Oil Company Limited Group
Statement of Financial Performance (Unaudited)

                                           Year to Date    Year to Date
                                           30 June 2004    30 Sept 2004
                                              $'000           $'000
Revenue
Sales revenue - Oil                                420          591
              - NGL                              1,331        2,133
              - Gas                             17,235       24,307
                                                -------------------
Sales Revenue                                   18,986       27,031
                                                -------------------

Operating Costs
Production costs                                (6,419)      (8,765)
Amortisation expense                            (5,103)      (7,510)
Restoration expense                               (122)        (174)
                                               ---------------------
Total Operating Costs                          (11,644)     (16,449)
                                               ---------------------
Trading Profit                                   7,342       10,582

Net interest income                                712        1,452
Net foreign currency gains                       1,047          130
Exploration expenditure expensed                (4,907)      (5,663)
Exploration expenditure written off            (15,484)     (15,484)
Other (including general and                    (5,753)      (9,107)
administrative costs)                          ---------------------
Loss From Ordinary Activities Before           (17,043)     (18,090)
Income Tax Expense

Income tax credit                                1,888        1,266
                                               --------------------
Net Loss After Income Tax Expense              (15,155)     (16,824)
                                               =====================



               +------------------------------------------------+
               |Definitions:                                    |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |BOE         |Barrel of oil equivalent. The      |
               |            |factor used to convert gas to oil  |
               |            |equivalent is based upon an        |
               |            |approximate energy value of 6,000  |
               |            |cubic feet per barrel and not price|
               |            |equivalence at the time.           |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |BOEPD       |Barrel of oil equivalent per day.  |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |BOPD        |Barrel of oil per day inclusive of |
               |            |NGLs.                              |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |MMBBL       |Million barrels.                   |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |MMBO        |Million barrels of oil.            |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |MMBOE       |Million barrels of oil equivalent. |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |MMSCF/D     |Million standard cubic feet per    |
               |            |day.                               |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+
               |Quarter     |Means the period 1 July 2004 to 30 |
               |            |September 2004.                    |
               +------------+-----------------------------------+

Roc Oil Company Limited Group
Statement of Financial Position (Unaudited)

                                           30 June 2004    30 Sept 2004
                                              $'000           $'000
Current Assets
Cash assets                                     119,841       89,616
Receivables                                      19,441        6,048
Inventories                                       2,850        2,577
Other                                             1,124        2,710
                                                --------------------
                                                143,256      100,951
                                                --------------------
Non Current Assets
Development and production assets                78,893       76,840
Exploration expenditure capitalised             102,613      105,741
Receivables                                       1,922        3,777
Materials inventory                                  54           44
Plant and equipment                               4,354        4,294
Other                                                78           76
                                                --------------------
                                                187,914      190,772
                                                --------------------
Total Assets                                    331,170      291,723
                                                --------------------

Current Liabilities
Payables                                         22,614        9,036
Interest bearing liabilities                     20,131          180
Current tax liabilities                           6,634        6,474
Provisions                                          908          852
                                                 -------------------
                                                 50,287       16,542
                                                 -------------------
Non Current Liabilities
Interest Bearing Liabilities                      1,022          977
Deferred tax liabilities                         21,118       20,303
Deferred income                                     162          170
Provisions                                        4,329        4,234
                                                --------------------
                                                 26,631       25,684
                                                --------------------
Total Liabilities                                76,918       42,226
                                                --------------------
NET ASSETS                                      254,252      249,497
                                                ====================
Equity
Contributed equity                              291,184      291,218
Accumulated losses                             (52,323)     (53,991)
Reserves                                         15,391       12,270
                                               ---------------------
TOTAL EQUITY                                    254,252      249,497
                                               =====================



                            ROC'S DRILLING PROGRAMME*
                           October 2004 to March 2005

*ROC's Drilling Programme attached to the copy of this release on ROC's website 
(http://www.rocoil.com.au/Pages/ASX_Releases/2004_Releases/November-2004.html)

For further information please contact:
Dr John Doran
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
or visit ROC's website: www.rocoil.com.au

Dr Kevin Hird
General Manager Business Development
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]

Ann-Marie Wilkinson/Nick Lambert
Bell Pottinger Corporate & Financial
Tel: [phone]




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