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TAG Oil TAGOF .63- Independent Canadian
oil and gas exploration company announced
today the acquisition of new properties in the proven Taranaki Basin, New
Zealand.
TAG Oil Ltd., in a 50/50 Joint Venture with partner Austral Pacific Energy
Ltd., has acquired all the onshore New Zealand assets of Australian-based Tap
Oil Limited. The acquisition has further increased TAG's working interest in
three of eight existing TAG permits within the onshore Taranaki, as well as
adding strategic new acreage in six additional onshore permits. Drilling and
completion inventory was also acquired by the Joint Venture. All new lands are
exploration permits with the exception of PMP 38153, a production permit known
as the Kahili Mining License.
According to Drew Cadenhead, CEO of TAG Oil: "The lands acquired from Tap
are contiguous with our existing focus in the production fairway of onshore
Taranaki. We're happy to increase our interest in existing projects like our
SuppleJack gas/condensate project. Since Christmas, we have more than doubled
our net acreage in this key area from 30,000 acres to 66,000 acres."
"We are at a much higher working interest in our 3-D seismically defined
Waitoriki deep gas prospect scheduled to be drilled later this year, and we've
added a number of new deep gas prospects, including an upcoming well within
the Kahili Mining License. In 2002, Austral and its JV partners made an
exciting discovery with the Kahili-1 well which flowed significant quantities
of gas, but once put into full time production, it unexpectedly stopped
producing. Newly acquired seismic has led to an updip location planned for
later this year. NGC, a major gas infrastructure company in New Zealand built
a production facility on this Permit for the Kahili-1 well, which now sits
idle and will provide immediate market access for any new discoveries," Mr.
Cadenhead concluded.
Completion of the Tap acquisition is subject to MED approval.
An update on TAG Oil interests in the Taranaki Basin can be found at the
following link, on the company's website:
http://www.tagoil.com/oil-natural-gas-operations/taranaki-oil-gas-
operations.asp. An updated overview of all TAG Oil holdings can be found at
http://www.tagoil.com/oil-natural-gas-operations .
About TAG Oil:
TAG Oil Ltd. is an independent Canadian oil and gas exploration company
with a well-balanced portfolio of assets in and around the Canterbury and
Taranaki basins of New Zealand. This regional focus supports the Company's
mandate to explore in countries with low political risk and low government
taxation, through the establishment of a portfolio of both high risk/high
reward exploration projects and low risk/moderate reward acreage in producing
basins. With exploration permits totaling 4,133,576 gross acres (net
1,535,935) TAG Oil is one of the largest holders of prospective acreage in New
Zealand.
TAG Oil trades on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V) with the ticker symbol
TAO, and on the OTCBB with the symbol TAGOF. More information is available on
the Company's website at: www.tagoil.com.
Forward Looking Statements:
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts
are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainty
affecting the business of TAG Oil. Actual results may vary materially from the
information provided in this release. As a result there is no representation
by TAG Oil that actual results realized in the future will be the same in
whole or in part as those presented herein. Actual results may differ
materially from the results predicted, and reported results should not be
considered as an indication of future performance. Factors that could cause
actual results to differ from those contained in the
forward-looking statements are set forth in filings that the Company has made,
including the Company's most recent reports in Canada under National
Instrument 51-102 and in the United States under Forms 20-F and 6K. The TSX
Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.
SOURCE TAG Oil Ltd.


Contact Information:
Jeanette Long, [phone], ext. 710, or [e-mail], for TAG Oil Ltd.

WebSite:
http://www.tagoil.com