Annual General Meeting Statement

Kea Petroleum plc

("Kea" or the "Company")

Annual General Meeting Statement

Puka 2 Drilling Commenced Yesterday

At the Annual General Meeting of Kea Petroleum plc (AIM:KEA), Chairman, Ian Gowrie-Smith, will make the following statement:

"This has been a land mark year for Kea and its potential for the coming year is even more exciting. It was separately announced today that drilling at Puka 2 has now started. Puka 2 is not expected to be completed until February as drilling will be interrupted with the 3D seismic survey commencing mid-December. Our objective is to turn Puka into a field producing 2,000 bopd as rapidly as possible and so transform Kea into a profitable oil and gas producer.

"January 2013 will see the beginning of an energetic year of exploration activity starting with Mauku 1 which is 50% funded by Methanex and negotiations to farm out an interest in Mauku are expected to be concluded shortly. The imminent drilling of Mauku could be the greatest possible value changer for the Company. Our exploration programme is mapped out into 2014 and as the balance between production and exploration becomes more apparent I look forward to this being reflected in shareholder value.

"Following the announcement of our preliminary results, the company successfully completed a capital raising of £7m which introduced several new institutional investors. Kea is now well-funded which provides the company greater flexibility in planning and executing appraisal and development programmes to enhance shareholder value."

This release has been approved by non-executive director Peter Mikkelsen FGS, AAPG, who has consented to the inclusion of the technical information in this release in the form and context in which it appears.

To learn more about Kea Petroleum, visit: www.keapetroleum.com or contact:

Kea Petroleum plc

Ian Gowrie-Smith, Chairman

David Lees, Executive Director Tel: +44 (0)20 7340 9970

RBC Capital Markets (NOMAD)

Stephen Foss

Daniel Conti Tel: +44 (0)20 7653 4000

WH Ireland Limited

James Joyce

Nick Field Tel: +44 (0)20 7220 1666

Buchanan

Tim Anderson

Mark Court

Sophie Cowles Tel: +44 (0)20 7466 5000

Notes to Editors:

Kea Petroleum is an AIM listed oil and gas exploration company with interests in four petroleum exploration permits in the Taranaki Basin of New Zealand. Kea listed on the London AIM market in February 2010.