CHALLENGER GOLD LIMITED — Capital/Financing Update 2012

Feb 19, 2012

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20 February 2012

ASX release

Operations Update – Mercury Stetson

• Rig mobilisation complete

• Drilling Operations have commenced

20 Feb 2012: Challenger Energy Ltd (“Challenger”) is pleased to announce that Unit Drilling Rig 25 has fully mobilized to site and has commenced drilling operations. As of 6 am Monday 20 February the rig was in the drilling process of “kicking off” from the cement plug.

The planned go forward program is to drill the hole to a total depth of approximately 12,500 feet through the Barnett and Woodford shales. The well will then be logged and cased before the rig is released.

Following demobilisation of the drilling rig, fracture stimulation and production testing equipment will be mobilized to site to conduct these operations.

Prospect Overview.

The Mercury Stetson Prospect contains two of the premier shale formations in the US – the Woodford and Barnett shales – in geological extensions of the core producing areas in the Arkoma and Fort Worth Basins.

The key well on the Mercury Stetson Prospect was drilled in 1978 before the development of any of the shale gas plays in the US. It identified that both shales present in the well had the same log signatures, geochemical characteristics and thicknesses as those found in the core producing areas of both the Barnett and Woodford shales.

Based on the technical information available from this well, the two shales are estimated to contain in excess of 360 BCF/sq mile of gas in place. Interpretation of the current seismic data suggests that the prospect area is ~ 55,000 acres (85 sq miles).

The core objective of the testing program is to demonstrate that gas can be delivered to surface from both the Barnett and Woodford shales in the prospect area. This is the critical piece of information that will underpin the validity of the massive gas in place and commercial potential of the prospect area.

Challenger Energy has agreed to farm in to earn 50% of the Mercury Stetson Prospect which includes the Barnett and Woodford shales - both proven shale formations. The prospect which is potentially up to 55,000 acres (86 sq miles) has a massive potential gas in place with OGIP estimated at 360 BCF/sq mile. The JV area initially includes 26,000 acres

Address Level 17, 500 Collins Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000 Tel + 61 3 9614 0600 Fax +61 3 9614 0550 Email admin@challengerenergy.com.au Web www.challengerenergy.com.au ACN 123 591 382

contiguous land position with three pipelines across prospect with an initial target of 35,000 acres across the prospect.

Further updates will be provided in due course.

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Mr Paul Bilston Managing Director P: 0402 060 405

About Challenger

Challenger Energy Limited is a public company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX:CEL) with a growing portfolio of exciting Oil and Gas exploration opportunities in South Africa and the USA.

Challenger’s strategy is to utilise its network of global contacts to identify and acquire material upstream oil and gas exploration opportunities at a low entry cost which enables it to focus its exploration expenditure on drilling wells and other direct expenditure.

Challenger is targeting opportunities where it can act as operator, and which have significant scale and materiality (more than 1 TCF of gas or 10 Million bbl of Oil). The scale of these opportunities provides potentially significant upside for the company.

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement contains “forward-looking statements”. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation: estimates of future earnings, the sensitivity of earnings to oil & gas prices and foreign exchange rate movements; estimates of future oil & gas production and sales; estimates of future cash flows, the sensitivity of cash flows to oil & gas prices and foreign exchange rate movements; statements regarding future debt repayments; estimates of future capital expenditures; estimates of reserves and statements regarding future exploration results and the replacement of reserves; and where the Company expresses or implies an expectation or belief as to future events or results, such expectation or belief is expressed in good faith and believed to have a reasonable basis. However, forward looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed, projected or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks include, but are not limited to oil and gas price volatility, currency fluctuations, increased production costs and variances in reserves or recovery rates from those assumed in the company’s plans, as well as political and operational risks in the countries and states in which we operate or sell product to, and governmental regulation and judicial outcomes. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors, see the Company’s Annual Reports, as well as the Company’s other filings. The Company does not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to any “forward looking statement” to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.