CliffHead 5 Drilling Commence

Roc Oil Company Limited
21 February 2005





21 February 2005

                        ROC OIL COMPANY LIMITED ('ROC')
                            STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE


 TWO-WELL APPRAISAL/DEVELOPMENT DRILLING PROGRAMME STARTS AT THE CLIFF HEAD OIL
                       FIELD, OFFSHORE WESTERN AUSTRALIA

KEY POINT

•   Cliff Head-5, the first well of a two well appraisal/development
    drilling programme, commenced drilling at the Cliff Head Oil Field on 18
    February 2005. By next week's report time, CH-5 is expected to have reached
    Total Depth after coring through the prognosed reservoir. The rig will then
    move to drill the development well Cliff Head-6.


Roc Oil (WA) Pty Ltd, Operator for and on behalf of the WA-286-P Joint Venture
(the 'Joint Venture'), advises that the ENSCO-56 jack-up drilling rig commenced
drilling the CH-5 appraisal well at 10.30 am on 18 February (Australian Western
Standard Time ('AWST')). As at 0600 hrs Monday 21 February (AWST) the rig had
cemented 9/58 inch casing at 1,110 metres and was preparing to drill ahead.

CH-5 is a vertical 'pathfinder' well located about 1 km southeast of the CH-1
discovery well (Attachment 1*). Regardless of drilling results, CH-5 will be
plugged and abandoned because its primary purpose is to determine the nature and
extent of the reservoir in the East Ridge portion of the Cliff Head structure so
as to better define the location of a horizontal development well which, subject
to a Final Investment Decision ('FID') by the Joint Venture, will be drilled
from the future production platform to access the oil in the East Ridge.

The WA-286-P Joint Venture comprises: Equity

    Roc Oil (WA) Pty Ltd (Operator).........................37.5%
    AWE Oil (Western Australia) Pty Ltd ....................27.5%
    Wandoo Petroleum Pty Ltd ...............................24.0%
    Voyager (PB) Limited ....................................6.0%
    CIECO Exploration and Production
    (Australia) Pty Ltd .....................................5.0%

*For Attachment 1 see copy of this release on ROC's website
(http://www.rocoil.com.au/Pages/ASX_Releases/2005_Releases/February-2005.html)

Bruce Clement                            For further information please contact:
Chief Operating Officer                                            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]

                                                                    Nick Lambert
                                            Bell Pottinger Corporate & Financial
                                                       Tel:  [phone]




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