HOUSTON, Feb. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE: MRO) today announced the completion of the sale of a 20 percent undivided working interest in the Production Sharing Contract and Joint Operating Agreement in Angola Block 32 to Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola, Empresa Publica - (SONANGOL, E.P.)'s wholly owned subsidiary, Sonangol Pesquisa e Producao, S.A. Under previously announced terms, the transaction has an effective date of Jan. 1, 2009. Marathon will retain a 10 percent working interest in Block 32.

"Through this sale, Marathon has been able to capture exploration value and bring better balance to our overall portfolio by redeploying capital into other growth regions for the Company. At the same time, maintaining a 10 percent interest in both Blocks 31 and 32 provides Marathon with exposure to this important resource base," said Dave Roberts, Marathon executive vice president, Upstream.

The 12 previously announced discoveries on Block 32 include: Gindungo, Canela, Cola, Gengibre, Mostarda, Salsa, Caril, Manjericao, Louro, Cominhos, Colorau and Alho. Conceptual development studies are under way in order to establish the feasibility of a first development area in the central southeastern part of Block 32.

The concessionaire of Block 32 is SONANGOL, E.P. The operator is TOTAL Exploration and Production Angola (Block 32 Ltd) with 30 percent interest. Sonangol E.P. holds a 20 percent interest; Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Block 32) holds a 15 percent interest; and Petrogal holds a 5 percent interest.

Marathon is an integrated international energy company engaged in exploration and production; oil sands mining; integrated gas; and refining, marketing and transportation operations. Marathon, which is based in Houston, has principal operations in the United States, Angola, Canada, Equatorial Guinea, Indonesia, Libya, Norway, Poland and the United Kingdom. Marathon is the fourth largest United States-based integrated oil company and the nation's fifth largest refiner. For more information, please visit our Web site at http://www.marathon.com.

    Media Relations Contacts:      Lee Warren           713-296-4103
                                   John Porretto        713-296-4102
    Investor Relations Contacts:   Howard Thill         713-296-4140
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SOURCE Marathon Oil Corporation