HOUSTON, Jan. 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Harvest Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE: HNR) today announced that it has encountered oil in the wildcat well Dussafu Tortue Marin-1 (DTM-1) drilled in the Dussafu Marin PSC, in the offshore waters of Gabon, West Africa. Harvest operates the Dussafu PSC, holding a 66.667 percent interest. The well was spudded on November 19, 2012, and is being drilled to test the potential of the pre-salt Gamba and Dentale Formations.

Drilled with the Saipem Scarabeo 3 semi-submersible drilling unit in 380 feet of water, the DTM-1 well has reached a vertical depth of 11,260 feet within the Dentale Formation. Log evaluation and pressure data indicate that Harvest has discovered approximately 42 feet of pay in a 72 foot oil column within the Gamba Formation and 123 feet of pay in stacked reservoirs within the Dentale Formation.

Additional technical evaluation will be required to appraise this discovery. Forward plans include fluid sampling and a sidetrack, which will appraise the Dentale sands in a structurally superior position and the lateral extent of the Gamba reservoir, with a provision for flow testing one or more of the subject pay intervals. Harvest will provide an update on the drilling operations in due course.

About Harvest Natural Resources

Harvest Natural Resources, Inc., headquartered in Houston, Texas, is an independent energy company with principal operations in Venezuela, exploration assets in Indonesia, West Africa, China and Oman, and business development offices in Singapore and the United Kingdom. For more information visit the Company's website at www.harvestnr.com.

CONTACT:
Stephen C. Haynes
Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
(281) 899-5716

This press release may contain projections and other 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. They include estimates and timing of expected oil and gas production, oil and gas reserve projections of future oil pricing, future expenses, planned capital expenditures, anticipated cash flow and our business strategy. All statements other than statements of historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements. Although Harvest believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Actual results may differ materially from Harvest's expectations as a result of factors discussed in Harvest's 2011 Annual Report on Form 10-K and other public filings.

SOURCE Harvest Natural Resources, Inc.