Forest Oil Corporation is commencing a private placement offering to eligible purchasers, subject to market and other conditions, of an aggregate $500 million principal amount of senior notes due 2019. Forest intends to use the proceeds of the offering to fund a portion of the cash merger consideration in connection with its pending acquisition of The Houston Exploration Company (Houston Exploration).

The notes will not initially be registered under the Securities Act of 1933 or the securities laws of any state and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws.

The notes may be resold by the initial purchasers pursuant to Rule 144A and Regulation S under the Securities Act. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which the offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state.