OREANDA-NEWS. April 26, 2011. HRT Participacoes em Petroleo S.A. (the “Company” or “HRT”) is glad to inform the spud in, on April 21 at 11:45 p.m, by its subsidiary HRT O&G, of its first exploration well, location HRT-170-AM, code 1-HRT-1-AM granted by the National Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuel Agency - ANP, in the Northeastern portion of Block SOL-T-170, in the Solimoes Basin. The objective of this drilling is to test an East-West anticlinal geological structure, already drilled by well 1-NSM-1-AM (Norte de Sao Mateus), where oil and gas production has been obtained. Based on previous drillings, HRT believes this well will find two oil bearing reservoirs: (1) Lower Jurua Formation sandstones (Carboniferous age) and (2) Uere Formation sandstones (Devonian age), in line with the results of well 1-BRSA-769 (Igarape Chibata), Petrobras discovery, 19 km apart from this location.

This first well is located in the Municipality of Tefe, Amazonas State, and will be drilled by rig TUS-115, from Tuscany, with a forecast to reach final depth at around 3,400 m.

HRT holds 55% participating interest in 21 exploration blocks in the Solimoes Basin, covering an acreage of 48.5 thousand km? where 52 prospects have been mapped and resources certified, as well as 11 discoveries with contingent resources.

The date chosen to spud the first HRT`s well in the Solimoes Basin - April 21 - represents the commencement of a challenging exploratory program, which aims to consolidate the position of the Amazon Region as a large oil and gas producing area in Brazil, where approximately 130 wells will be drilled up to 2015.

In May three new wells will be drilled, two in the Tefe Region and one in the Municipality of Carauari.