Continental Resources Enters Into Joint Venture With SK E&S Of South Korea To Develop Northwest Cana Woodford Shale

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oct. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Continental Resources, Inc. ("Continental" or the "Company") (NYSE: CLR) announced today it has formed a joint venture with a wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary of SK E&S Co. Ltd ("SK") to jointly develop a significant portion of Continental's Northwest Cana Woodford natural gas assets, primarily in Blaine and Dewey counties, Oklahoma. SK E&S is a subsidiary of SK Group, one of the largest conglomerates in South Korea and part of SK Holdings, a Fortune Global 100 company.

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Continental sold a 49.9% interest in approximately 44,000 net acres in the highly prospective Northwest Cana area of the Anadarko Woodford Shale play, including interests in 37 producing wells, for total consideration of approximately $360 million. Continental received $90 million at closing, and SK has committed to pay an additional $270 million to carry 50% of Continental's remaining share of future drilling and completion costs (the "carry"). Continental anticipates no change in its 2014 and 2015 capital expenditures, its production mix of crude oil and natural gas, or its overall production targets as a result of this agreement.

"We are excited to establish this joint venture with such an established and highly regarded major international energy company," said Harold G. Hamm, Continental's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We are proud SK has chosen to join with Continental in SK's initial investment in U.S. shale natural gas."

J. J. Yu, President and Chief Executive Officer of SK E&S, said, "SK E&S is pleased to join with Continental Resources, a proven leader in developing U.S. unconventional resource plays, in what we expect will be a long-term strategic relationship in energy production."

Continental and SK have entered into a joint development agreement ("JDA") under which Continental has five years to utilize the carry, subject to extension under certain circumstances. The JDA also establishes an area of mutual interest ("AMI") in Northwest Cana and certain incentives for the joint venture to expand its leasehold position. Continental will be the operator for all current and future wells that are operated by the joint venture. The Company plans to commence drilling in the AMI during November 2014, with four operated rigs running by the end of the year.

"This joint venture is consistent with our strategy to enhance the value of all our assets," said Jack H. Stark, Continental's President and Chief Operating Officer. "The structure creates a joint venture that we expect will be cash flow positive for Continental throughout the life of the project and should deliver single-well economics that compete with any other wells in our world-class inventory when the carry is applied."

"Our agreement with Continental underscores SK's 20-plus year commitment to the U.S. market as a platform for the globalization of our energy business and as a source of value-creation for stakeholders in both companies," said Shaun Parvez, President of SK E&S Americas.

About Continental Resources
Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR) is a Top 10 independent oil producer in the United States. Based in Oklahoma City, Continental is the largest leaseholder and producer in the nation's premier oil field, the Bakken play of North Dakota and Montana. The Company also has significant positions in Oklahoma, including its SCOOP play and the Northwest Cana play. With a focus on the exploration and production of oil, Continental is on a mission to unlock the technology and resources vital to American energy independence. In 2014, the Company will celebrate 47 years of operation. For more information, please visit www.CLR.com.

About SK E&S, SK Group and SK Holdings
SK E&S, an affiliate of SK Group, is Korea's leading energy service provider, engaged in city gas, district heating, gas-fueled electricity generation, and LNG businesses. SK Group, one of the largest conglomerates in Korea, is composed of 81 affiliate companies sharing the SK brand and culture. While SK Group is primarily involved in the chemical, petroleum and energy industries, it also owns Korea's largest wireless operator, SK Telecom, and the world's second largest memory semiconductor manufacturer, SK Hynix. SK Holdings, the parent company of SK Group, ranked 64^th in the 2013 Fortune Global 500. For more information, please visit www.skens.com.

Cautionary Statement for the Purpose of the "Safe Harbor" Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements included in this press release other than statements of historical fact, including, but not limited to, statements or information concerning the Company's future operations, performance, financial condition, production and reserves, schedules, plans, timing of development, returns, budgets, costs, business strategy, objectives, and cash flow, are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, the words "could," "may," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "project," "budget," "plan," "continue," "potential," "guidance," "strategy," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. Forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions about future events and currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable and based on reasonable assumptions, no assurance can be given that such expectations will be correct or achieved or that the assumptions are accurate. When considering forward-looking statements, readers should keep in mind the risk factors and other cautionary statements described under Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, registration statements and other reports filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), and other announcements the Company makes from time to time.

The Company cautions readers these forward-looking statements are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control, incident to the exploration for, and development, production, and sale of, crude oil and natural gas. These risks include, but are not limited to, commodity price volatility, inflation, lack of availability of drilling, completion and production equipment and services and transportation infrastructure, environmental risks, drilling and other operating risks, lack of availability and security of computer-based systems, regulatory changes, the uncertainty inherent in estimating crude oil and natural gas reserves and in projecting future rates of production, cash flows and access to capital, the timing of development expenditures, and the other risks described under Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, registration statements and other reports filed from time to time with the SEC, and other announcements the Company makes from time to time.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Should one or more of the risks or uncertainties described in this press release occur, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, the Company's actual results and plans could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. This cautionary statement should also be considered in connection with any subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements that the Company, or persons acting on its behalf, may make.

Except as otherwise required by applicable law, the Company disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/continental-resources-enters-into-joint-venture-with-sk-es-of-south-korea-to-develop-northwest-cana-woodford-shale-626548828.html

SOURCE Continental Resources

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