Marathon Completes Sale of Block 32 Interest to Sonangol

Marathon Oil has completed the sale of a 20% undivided working interest in the Production Sharing Contract and Joint Operating Agreement in Angola Block 32 to Sonangol's wholly owned subsidiary, Sonangol Pesquisa e Producao, S.A. Under previously announced terms, the transaction has an effective date of Jan. 1, 2009. Marathon will retain a 10% working interest in Block 32.

"Through this sale, Marathon has been able to capture exploration value and bring better balance to our overall portfolio by redeploying capital into other growth regions for the Company. At the same time, maintaining a 10 percent interest in both Blocks 31 and 32 provides Marathon with exposure to this important resource base," said Dave Roberts, Marathon executive vice president, Upstream.

The 12 previously announced discoveries on Block 32 include: Gindungo, Canela, Cola, Gengibre, Mostarda, Salsa, Caril, Manjericao, Louro, Cominhos, Colorau and Alho. Conceptual development studies are under way in order to establish the feasibility of a first development area in the central southeastern part of Block 32.

The concessionaire of Block 32 is Sonangol E.P. The operator is Total Exploration and Production Angola (Block 32 Ltd) with 30% interest. Sonangol E.P. holds a 20% interest; Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Block 32) holds a 15% interest; and Petrogal holds a 5% interest.