Asset Acquisition

Gulfsands Petroleum PLC
11 May 2005



10 May 2005



Gulfsands Petroleum PLC
('Gulfsands' or 'the Company')

Gulfsands acquires Devon Energy's 80% interest in Syria Block 26

Gulfsands becomes operator and farms out 50% interest to SoyuzNefteGas



Gulfsands Petroleum (symbol GPX), the AIM listed oil and gas exploration,
development and production company with activities in the USA, Syria and Iraq
announces that it has signed a Share Purchase Agreement with Devon Energy
International, Ltd. to acquire all of the capital stock of Devon Syria, Ltd. for
an undisclosed cash consideration.  The sole asset of Devon Syria, Ltd. is an
80% working interest in the Production Sharing Contract for Block 26 in Syria,
in which Gulfsands currently owns a 20% working interest.



Simultaneously, Gulfsands has executed a Participation Agreement with
SoyuzNefteGas, a Russian oil and gas company, whereby Gulfsands will assign to
SoyuzNefteGas a 50% working interest in Block 26.  The new Block 26 ownership
structure (subject to approval by the Syrian authorities) will be Gulfsands as
operator with a 50% working interest and SoyuzNefteGas with the remaining 50%
working interest.



The new Gulfsands-operated venture will proceed with the work program in Block
26 which consists of seismic acquisition and drilling of 4 exploration wells
during the next two years.  During the balance of 2005, Gulfsands expects to
acquire a minimum of 500 kilometers of new 2D seismic in Block 26 and commence
planning for the first exploration well to be drilled late in 2005 or early
2006.



This acquisition is expected to close before the end of May 2005.



Gulfsands' Chairman and CEO, John Dorrier, said:



'Devon's corporate decision to exit from Syria presented us with an excellent
opportunity to increase our stake in the block.  We have already identified 27
exploitation and exploration prospects and leads with mean resources potential
of 1 billion barrels of recoverable oil in the block. We plan to move quickly to
execute the work program in the Block during the remainder of 2005 and should be
in a position to drill our first exploration well late this year or early next
year.'








Enquiries:


Gulfsands Petroleum (Houston)                         713-626-9564
David DeCort, Chief Financial Officer

College Hill (London)                                 020-7457-2020
Ben Brewerton / Jim Joseph

Seymour Pierce (London)                               020-7107-8000
Richard Redmayne
Jonathan Wright





 Note to Editors





•         Gulf of Mexico, USA

The Company has a 52.6% interest in Northstar Gulfsands, which owns interests in
39 producing oil and gas fields offshore Texas and Louisiana and operates 8 of
those fields. Northstar Gulfsands has proved and probable reserves of 4.7 mmbbls
of oil and some 29.2 bcf of gas.



•         Syria

In Syria, prior to today's announcement, Gulfsands had a 20% interest in Block
26 through the venture with Devon Energy. The block covers 11,000 sq kms and
surrounds areas which currently produce over 100,000 bopd from existing fields.
The Company is planning the acquisition of an extensive 2D seismic programme and
the drilling of the first well during 2005. Gulfsands has identified 27
exploitation and exploration prospects and leads with mean resources potential
of 1 billion barrels of recoverable oil.



•         Iraq

Gulfsands has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of
Oil in Iraq for the Misan Gas Project in Southern Iraq.  The project will
gather, process and transmit natural gas that is currently a waste by-product of
oil production in the region and will end the environmentally damaging practice
of gas flaring. Gulfsands has completed a feasibility study and expects to
conduct further technical work and commercial discussions with the Iraq Oil
Ministry in the first half of 2005.



•         Onshore USA

At the Emily Hawes field, which has previously produced approximately 1.7 bcf of
natural gas before being shut-in, gas production is expected to start during the
first half of 2005.  The first well in the Barb Mag oil field is expected to be
drilled in the second quarter of 2005.  Darcy Energy has a 25% and 37.5% working
interest in these fields respectively.




                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange