Pacific Rubiales is Poised to Enter LNG Export Market

TORONTO, March 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp. (TSX: PRE) (BVC: PREC) (BOVESPA: PREB) acting through its wholly owned subsidiary Pacific Stratus Energy Colombia Corp. ("PSE"), announced today the signing of a natural gas Liquefaction, Regasification, Storage and Loading Services Agreement with Belgium based Exmar NV ("Exmar").

The Agreement calls for Exmar to build, operate and maintain a Floating Liquefaction Regasification & Storage Unit ("FLRSU") to be located on the Colombian Caribbean coast. The Agreement grants PSE exclusive guaranteed rights to supply and liquefy up to 69.5 MMcf/d over a 15 year period, under a tolling structure. The FLRSU will have a storage capacity of 14,000 m³ (+/- 0.5 million tonnes per annum) of LNG and will be able to accommodate alongside a 140,000 m³ LNG Floating Storage Unit ("FSU"). Commercial Operations of the FLSRU are estimated to start in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Ronald Pantin, Chief Executive Officer of the Company commented: "We are very excited with this Agreement as it opens new markets and fast-tracks monetization of the Company's extensive natural gas reserves. This leverages the Company's strategy to explore and develop its large gas resources in northern Colombia, and also reinforces our view that Colombia has enough gas resources to become a reliable LNG supplier for the region."

As part of the project, PSE will build an 88 km, 18" diameter pipeline from its producing La Creciente Field to the Caribbean coast with an initial design transportation capacity of 100 MMcf/d. Gas for the project will be sourced from La Creciente Field.

With this project, the Company will be initially targeting markets of Central America and the Caribbean, aiming to replace fuel oil and diesel currently used for power generation. The project will also open potential industrial and residential market opportunities for natural gas in these countries, while putting in place new incentives to explore and develop the large undiscovered natural gas resources in Colombia.

Pacific Rubiales, a Canadian-based company and producer of natural gas and heavy crude oil, owns 100 percent of Meta Petroleum Corp., a Colombian oil operator which operates the Rubiales, Piriri and Quifa oil fields in the Llanos Basin in association with Ecopetrol, S.A., the Colombian national oil company, and 100 percent of Pacific Stratus Energy Corp. which operates the La Creciente natural gas field. The Company is focused on identifying opportunities primarily within the eastern Llanos Basin of Colombia as well as in other areas in Colombia and northern Peru. Pacific Rubiales has working interests in 43 blocks in Colombia, Peru and Guatemala.

The Company's common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange and La Bolsa de Valores de Colombia and as Brazilian Depositary Receipts on Brazil's Bolsa de Valores Mercadorias e Futuros under the ticker symbols PRE, PREC, and PREB, respectively.

Exmar, headquartered in Antwerp Belgium, is a diversified and independent shipping group serving the international gas and oil industry. The company is specialised in activities relating to the transport of gas, and in particular the transport of liquefied gases, such as LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) and ammonia (NH³). Apart from providing the ships for the transportation of these products, it also performs studies and undertakes the management of commercial, technical and administrative activities for the industry. Exmar strives to create shareholder value over the long term by balancing long and short-term agreements to counteract volatility in the freight market, combined with providing services that are tailored to the needs of the customer. The company's shares trade on the Euronext Brussels under the symbol EXM.

Advisories

Cautionary Note Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future (including, without limitation, statements regarding estimates and/or assumptions in respect of production, revenue, cash flow and costs, reserve and resource estimates, potential resources and reserves and the Company's exploration and development plans and objectives) are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, the Company. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things: uncertainty of estimates of capital and operating costs, production estimates and estimated economic return; the possibility that actual circumstances will differ from the estimates and assumptions; failure to establish estimated resources or reserves; fluctuations in petroleum prices and currency exchange rates; inflation; changes in equity markets; political developments in Colombia, Guatemala or Peru; changes to regulations affecting the Company's activities; uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future; the uncertainties involved in interpreting drilling results and other geological data; and the other risks disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in the Company's annual information form dated March 14, 2012 filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

In addition, reported production levels may not be reflective of sustainable production rates and future production rates may differ materially from the production rates reflected in this press release due to, among other factors, difficulties or interruptions encountered during the production of hydrocarbons.

SOURCE Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp.