Onshore Gas Discovery

Gulfsands Petroleum PLC
17 August 2005

17 August 2005



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


Gulfsands Announces Onshore Gas Discovery at Barb Mag Field

Gulfsands Commences Onshore Production at Emily Hawes Field


Gulfsands Petroleum PLC (symbol GPX), the AIM listed oil and gas exploration,
development and production company with activities in the USA, Syria and Iraq,
announces a new gas-well discovery onshore Texas within Darcy Energy LLC, a
subsidiary company owned 80% by Gulfsands.  Gulfsands recently increased its
ownership in Darcy from 75% to 80%.


This is Gulfsands' fourth exploratory discovery out of five wells drilled since
the Group listed on AIM in April of this year.


Gas Discovery

In Fort Bend County Texas, Darcy Energy has completed the drilling and testing
of the first re-development well in the Barb Mag oil field which included the
exploratory drilling of a deeper section not previously tested within the field.
Wireline logging of the well which was drilled to a total measured depth of
9,377 feet identified 4 primary zones of interest with potential net pay
totaling 38 feet.  The lowest interval at 9,212 feet was tested and flowed
natural gas at a rate of 1.5 million cubic feet per day and 36 barrels of
condensate per day on an 11/64 inch choke at 3,875 pounds flowing tubing
pressure.  It is anticipated that production from this new gas and condensate
discovery should commence within the next 60 days.  The upper most zones will be
tested at a future date.  Darcy owns a 37.5% working interest in this well and
the net estimated cost to Darcy for the drilling, testing and completion is
estimated to be less than $400,000.



Commencement of Onshore Gas Production

In Calhoun County Texas, natural gas production has commenced in the Emily Hawes
Field.  A sustained rate on the well has yet to be determined since the well is
still cleaning up but initial gross production is anticipated to be in the range
of approximately 500,000 to 750,000 cubic feet of natural gas per day.  Darcy
Energy now owns a 34.375% working interest in the Emily Hawes Field following
the acquisition of an additional 9.375% working interest for approximately
$111,000.




Gulfsands' CEO, John Dorrier, said:



'These two successful wells are the beginning of Gulfsands' work in the onshore
US.  The onshore US is an area where Gulfsands can add modest reserves at
competitive costs of finding and developing.  In addition, transportation
infrastructure is in place to allow rapid conversion of these reserves into cash
flow at a period of time when oil and gas prices are at an historic high level'.




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 Group 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 as of 1 November 2004.



•         Syria

In Syria, Gulfsands owns a 50% working interest in Block 26 and is the operator.
The block covers 11,000 sq kms and surrounds areas which currently produce over
100,000 bopd from existing fields.  The Group has contracted for the acquisition
of an extensive 2D seismic programme during the summer of 2005 and the drilling
of the first well during the first quarter of 2006. 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 and is currently
negotiating the definitive contract for the project.  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

Gulfsands operates onshore USA through its subsidiary company Darcy Energy LLC.
Gulfsands recently increased its ownership in Darcy Energy to 80%.  At the Emily
Hawes field, initial gas production commenced in the summer of 2005.  The first
well in the Barb Mag oil field has been drilled and wireline logged with some 38
feet of potential net pay and production tested at 1.5 million cubic feet of
natural gas per day and 36 barrels of condensate per day.  Production from this
well should commence by October 2005.  Darcy Energy has a 34.375% and 37.5%
working interest in these fields respectively.










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