PRESS RELEASE 350 Glenborough Drive Contact: Greg Panagos: 281-872-3125 Suite 100 [email protected] Houston, TX 77067

NOBLE ENERGY’S LIQUIFIED PETROLEUM GAS EXPANSION PROJECT APPROVED BY GOVERNMENT OF EQUATORIAL GUINEA

LPG and Condensate Production to Increase

HOUSTON (Dec. 20, 2002) – Noble Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NBL), announced today that the Government of Equatorial Guinea has approved the phase 2B Alba field expansion project. Noble Energy and its partner, Marathon Oil Company, expect the phase 2B expansion will be completed by the fourth quarter 2004. Phase 2B is expected to increase gross production of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by over 13,000 barrels per day (Bpd) (3,700 Bpd net to Noble Energy) and gross condensate production by over 8,000 Bpd (2,300 Bpd net to Noble Energy). The project includes increasing processing capacity, storage, and offloading facilities at the existing LPG plant. A fractionation unit allowing for the production of propane and butane will also be installed. Phase 2B will complement the phase 2A expansion project announced in September of this year, which will increase gross condensate production from 17,000 to 46,000 Bpd (a net increase of 9,000 Bpd net to Noble Energy). Gross condensate and LPG capacity following the completion of both phases 2A and 2B will be approximately 54,000 Bpd and 16,000 Bpd, respectively (over 16,000 Bpd of condensate and 4,500 Bpd of LPG, net to Noble Energy). Noble Energy holds a 33.7 percent interest in the Alba field and related condensate production facilities, a 27.8 percent interest in the Bioko Island LPG plant, and a 45 percent interest in the Atlantic Methanol Company methanol plant that processes approximately 120 million cubic feet of lean Alba field gas per day into 2,500 tons per day of methanol. Other equity holders include Marathon Oil Company (NYSE: MRO), the operator, with a 63.3 percent interest in the Alba field and related condensate production facilities, a 52.2 percent interest in the Bioko Island LPG plant, and a 45 percent interest in the Atlantic Methanol Company methanol plant. GEPetrol, the state owned oil company of Equatorial Guinea owns the remaining equity interests in the Alba field. The Equatorial Guinea state-owned company, Guinea Ecuatorial Oil and Gas Marketing (GEOGAM), owns a 20 percent interest in the LPG Plant and a 10 percent interest in the Atlantic Methanol Company methanol plant. Noble Energy, the parent company of Samedan Oil Corporation, Noble Gas Marketing, Inc. and Noble Trading, Inc., is one of the nation’s leading independent energy companies. Noble Energy operates throughout major basins in the United States including the Gulf of Mexico, as well as internationally, in Argentina, China, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, the Mediterranean Sea, the North Sea and Vietnam.

This news release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this news release, including, without limitation, estimates of production and reserves, construction completion and statements of business prospects, objectives and strategies, are forward looking statements. Important factors that could cause the actual results of Noble Energy to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the volatility in commodity prices for oil and gas, the actual presence or recoverability of estimated reserves, the ability to replace reserves, environmental risks, drilling and other operating risks, risks related to exploration and development, competition, government regulation or action, the ability of management to execute its operating plans to meet stated business goals and other risks inherent in Noble Energy’s business that are detailed in its Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

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