Houston, Texas; Oslo, Norway; July 30, 2002: Petroleum Geo-Services ASA ("PGS") (NYSE: PGO; OSE: PGS) announced today that it has received a written communication from Veritas DGC Inc. ("Veritas") to the effect that the board of directors of Veritas has withdrawn its approval and recommendation supporting the pending combination with PGS under the merger agreement between the two companies. In light of this communication, which was announced by Veritas on July 30, PGS announced that it intends to proceed to terminate the merger agreement in accordance with its terms.
Petroleum Geo-Services is a technologically focused oilfield service company principally involved in two businesses: Geophysical Operations and Production Operations. PGS acquires, processes and markets 3D, time-lapse and multi-component seismic data. These data are used by oil and gas companies in the exploration for new reserves, the development of existing reservoirs, and the management of producing oil and gas fields. PGS' advanced geophysical technologies allow oil and gas companies to better characterize and monitor their reservoirs in order to enhance production and ultimate recovery of hydrocarbons. In its Production Operations business, PGS owns four floating production, storage and offloading systems ("FPSOs") and operates numerous offshore production facilities for oil and gas companies. FPSOs permit oil and gas companies to produce from offshore fields more quickly and cost effectively. PGS operates on a worldwide basis with headquarters in Oslo, Norway and Houston, Texas.