RNS Number:4856M
Venture Production PLC
18 June 2003

18 June 2003


VENTURE PRODUCTION plc
("Venture", "the Company" or "the Group")

Annual General Meeting Statement

At today's Annual General Meeting in Aberdeen, John Morgan, Venture's Chairman,
made the following statement:

"I am pleased to report that 2002 was another excellent year for Venture with
record operational and financial results.  In addition, 2002 saw substantial
progress made in the expansion of the Company's asset base with the completion
of three acquisitions in the North Sea as well as the successful development of
the new Sycamore field.  I am also pleased to report that this progress has
continued into 2003.  The successful listing on the London Stock Exchange helped
fund this expansion and development of the asset base and has allowed Venture to
take advantage of the changing ownership patterns in the North Sea.

In March 2003, we successfully brought the Sycamore field on stream one month
ahead of schedule and on budget, a direct result of the energy that the Venture
team and its partners brought to the project.  As an added bonus, this early
confirmation of the field's productive capacity was critical in allowing us to
lock in an attractive $29 per barrel oil price that was only available for a
short period in the run up to the start of the war in Iraq.  Later this month we
plan to commence the next phase of the development of the field with the
drilling of the North Sycamore production well.

So far in 2003 we have announced three acquisitions in the North Sea and in
March we completed the acquisition of an additional interest in the Brighton
Marine field in Trinidad. Upon completion these will, in aggregate, add around
5,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day ("boepd") net to Venture's current
production and 23 million barrels of oil equivalent ("boe") of proven and
probable reserves.  In addition, in keeping with our strategy, the North Sea
acquisitions will bring with them a number of significant development
opportunities which add to our portfolio.

It is worth noting that following completion of these acquisitions Venture will
operate 18 out of the 20 oil and gas fields in which it has interests. In
particular, the acquisition of the Greater Kittiwake Area interests from Shell
and ExxonMobil will bring Venture its first operatorship of a permanently manned
platform in the North Sea, a major step in our development as a significant UKCS
operator.

Earlier this month we commenced our 2003 drilling campaign in the southern
sector of the North Sea.  A workover on one of the Ann production wells has
already been successfully completed and the rig involved is about to move to
start drilling an appraisal well on the Annabel structure.

During the first five months of 2003, production volumes were in line with our
expectations at the start of the year.  Production will increase following
completion of our pending acquisitions as well as completion of the current Ann
and Sycamore field development work.  For 2003 as a whole we expect average
production to remain within our previously stated range of 18,000 to 21,000
boepd.

Based on our acquisitions announced to date and the expected investment in
development activity for the remainder of the year, Venture anticipates
investing a total of approximately #72 million in its business this year.  In
May, 2003 we completed a major refinancing of Venture's banking arrangements
which has expanded our credit facilities from $100 million to $175 million, thus
providing substantial headroom with which to continue the development of the
business.

The Board of Venture continues to believe that the Company is extremely well
positioned to acquire additional assets that may become available as a result of
the recent changes in industry conditions.  As ever, the rationale behind any
such future activity will be the delivery of further value growth for
shareholders through capital efficient expansion of our production base.  I
would like to take this opportunity to thank all our shareholders for their
continued support in the delivery of Venture's strategy."


ENQUIRIES

Venture Production plc                               Tel: 01224 619000
Bruce Dingwall, Chief Executive
Mike Wagstaff, Finance Director

Brunswick                                            Tel: 020 7404 5959
Patrick Handley
Eilis Murphy




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