Employee Stock Options Awarded

5 August 2012

Reference is made to the 23 July 2012 press release announcing employee stock options. Norse Energy Corp. ASA ("NEC" ticker code OSE - NEC, Oslo, Norway, U.S OTCQX symbol "NSEEY") announces that it has awarded new options to purchase 100,000 shares in Norse Energy to a key employee in accordance with the Norse Energy 2012 Stock Option Plan. The newly issued options carry a strike price of NOK 2.92 per share and are exercisable two years after the grant date of 3 August 2012. These newly issued options, if unexercised, will expire five years after the grant date. 

Norse Energy owns or leases approximately 130,000 net acres in New York State of which ~33,000 lie in the liquids rich shale fairways of Western New York, and the remaining ~97,000 net acres lie in the Marcellus and Utica natural gas fairways of Central New York. Internally estimated contingent resources total ~917 MMBOE or ~5.2 TCFGE. 

For further information, please contact: 

J. Chris Steinhauser, Chief Financial Officer 

Direct: +1 713 975 1900 

Email: csteinhauser@norseenergy.com 

Dennis Holbrook, Chief Legal Officer 

Direct: +1 716 568 2048 

Email: dholbrook@norseenergy.com