East West Petroleum Signs NELP-IX Production Sharing Contract in India


VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - March 29, 2012) - East West Petroleum Corp. (TSX VENTURE:EW) (the "Company" or "East West Petroleum") is pleased to announce the Company has signed a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) for Block AA-ONN-2010/2 with the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons of India in a signing ceremony held March 28th, 2012 in New Delhi. Partners in this NELP IX bid round Block are Oil India Ltd. (operator, 40%), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India (30%), and Gas Authority of India Ltd. (20%) and East West Petroleum (10%). The AA-ONN-2010/2 exploration Block lies in the Assam-Arakan Basin oil producing region of northeast India, a proven proliferous region where more than 100 fields have been found. Current production from the region is estimated at 95,000 boepd.

Under the terms of the PSC work program commitment, the partnership will acquire 395 sq. km. of 3D seismic data and drill two wells, at an estimated cost to the Company of $2.8 million. The 3D data will cover the entire Block and be used to high-grade structural leads already identified on 2D data, in preparation for drilling. The acreage is considered to be oil-prone.

David Sidoo, Executive Chairman, commented; "Finalization of this NELP IX bid round award with the Government of India is an important milestone in the Company's growth plans and we now look forward to working closely with India's premier national oil companies to explore in India. We are especially interested to expand our relationship in a shale gas bid round which is expected to take place in the not-to-distant future."

About Oil India Ltd:

Oil India Limited (OIL) is a leading Indian public sector oil and gas company under the administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of the Government of India. The company's current production is over 68,000 bo/d of crude and condensate and 2.3 Bcf/d of gas, mostly from the Assam-Arakan region. OIL's current proved plus probable reserves total in the order of 1.0 bboe. Over the last annual reporting period, OIL made a total of six new discoveries in the upper Assam Basin. OIL is undertaking extensive studies to assess the resource potential of shale gas and tight gas in the Assam-Arakan and Rajasthan areas, in preparation for a forthcoming shale bid round in India.

About Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India:

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India (ONGC) is India's largest E&P petroleum company, contributing 79% of India's oil and gas production. The company has two main segments: exploration and production and refining. In 2011, ONGC's domestic crude oil and gas production totalled approximately 1.0 mmboe/d. The company hold approximately 73% and 48% of India's oil and gas reserves respectively. The company was recently ranked as #2 in Platts top 250 global energy companies.

About Gas Authority of India Ltd:

Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) is India's principal gas transmission and marketing company. GAIL is involved in all aspects of the natural gas value chain, which include: exploration & production, processing, transmission, distribution and marketing. The company retains 8,500 km. of natural gas pipelines with capacity of 5.6 bcf/d. The company currently hold stakes in 27 E&P blocks and one coalbed methane block in India. GAIL has recently been ranked as "Asia's No. 1 Gas Utility Company", and globally, "No. 2 Gas Utility Company", in Platts Top 250 Energy Company rankings.

About East West Petroleum Corp.:

East West Petroleum is a TSX Venture Exchange-listed company which was established in 2010 to invest in emerging international unconventional resource plays, leveraging management's knowledge of international opportunities and unconventional play technical expertise. In its first 18 months of operations, the Company has built an attractive platform of assets: An oil-prone, exploration block in the Assam region of India with the three largest E&P Indian firms ONGC, Oil India and GAIL; four exploration concessions covering 1,000,000 acres in the prolific Pannonian Basin of western Romania and a 500,000 acre exploration block onshore Morocco where conventional and unconventional oil potential has been delineated. The Company has also established oil and gas production in Canada. The Company is now poised to enter operational phases in Romania, where it will be fully carried by its partner Gazprom-controlled Naftna Industrija Srbije in a seismic and 12-well drilling program commencing in 2012. The Company will operate geological field work and a seismic program to firm up drilling locations in Morocco. The Company's cash position of approximately $28.5 million will cover all anticipated seismic and drilling operations through 2012, with funds available to secure other exploration and/or producing properties.

Website: www.eastwestpetroleum.ca

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contact Information:

East West Petroleum Corp.
David Sidoo
Chairman
+1 604 682 1558
+1 604 682 1568 (FAX)

East West Petroleum Corp.
Greg Renwick
President & CEO
+1 972 955 7251
+1 604 683 1585 (FAX)
www.eastwestpetroleum.ca