DENVER, March 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Double Eagle Petroleum Co. (NASDAQ: DBLE) announced today that the Company's Niobrara exploration well 41-12N had an initial production rate of 467 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) per day. The production was composed of 334 barrels of oil and 800,000 cubic feet of natural gas per day.  The aforementioned production rate does not include any potential production from the deeper gas formations of the Frontier and Dakota.  The Company is awaiting additional permitting to begin production of these gas formations.  Currently the Company is installing a pumping unit on the well.  The 41-12N well offsets a current Dakota producing gas well and is the only Niobrara production well within 20 miles.  The Company currently has over 30,000 net acres held by unit in the area.

The well cost approximately $11.3 million to drill and complete.   Due to the exploratory nature of this well, and the pressure regimes encountered in drilling the well, the Company wrote off $4,430,000 of drilling costs on the December 31, 2012 financial statements.   

Year-ended Production

For the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company realized production of 10.5 Bcfe as compared to 9.3 Bcfe for the same prior year period.  The increase is due to the purchase of additional working interest in the Atlantic Rim and full year production on the Company's coal bed methane wells drilling at the end of 2011.

Developing Activities

Double Eagle continues to aggressively pursue strategic mergers and asset acquisitions that management believes will improve shareholder value. The Company is also assessing all its non-operated production and undeveloped acreage to evaluate opportunities for joint venture, pooling of interests, farm outs or dispositions.

Main Fork Unit Exploration Update

The Company and its partners continue to make progress on obtaining required permits and approvals to perform 3-D seismic over certain parts of the Main Fork Unit in Utah.  Currently, the plan calls for the seismic shoot to occur in the summer 2013.

About Double Eagle

Double Eagle Petroleum Co. explores for, develops, and sells natural gas and crude oil, with natural gas constituting more than 95% of its production and reserves. The Company currently has development activities and opportunities in its Atlantic Rim coal bed methane and in the Pinedale Anticline in Wyoming.  Also, exploration potential exists in its Niobrara acreage in Wyoming and Nebraska, which totals over 72,000 net acres.

This release may contain forward-looking statements regarding Double Eagle Petroleum Co.'s future and expected performance based on assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable.  No assurances can be given that these statements will prove to be accurate.  A number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from these statements, including, without limitation, lack of success of the Company or other companies in exploration, development or drilling activities in areas in or near the areas which the Company has interests,  decreases in prices for natural gas and crude oil, unexpected decreases in gas and oil production, the timeliness, costs and results of development and exploration activities, unanticipated delays and costs resulting from regulatory compliance, and other risk factors described from time to time in the Company's Forms 10-K and 10-Q and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  Double Eagle undertakes no obligation to publicly update these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Company Contact: 
John Campbell, IR  
(303) 794-8445 
www.dble.com  

SOURCE Double Eagle Petroleum Co.