“I am pleased with our first quarter results as we accomplished what we set out to do,” stated Charlie Fischer, Nexen’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “We not only met our production and financial targets but completed construction at Long Lake and kept the project on schedule and within our current cost estimate.” Charlie Fischer, President and CEO

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• Quarterly cash flow of $1,039 million ($1.96/share), up 74% over Q1 2007
• Record quarterly earnings of $630 million ($1.19/share), up 421% over Q1 2007
• Quarterly dividend to shareholders doubled to $0.05 per common share
• Quarterly production before royalties of 267,000 boe/d (up 12% over Q1 2007)-on track to meet annual production guidance
• Buzzard continues to outperform-quarterly production averages 212,000 boe/d gross (91,500 boe/d net)
• All wells steaming at Long Lake and upgrader on track for mid 2008 start up
• At Long Lake, bitumen production rates have exceeded 7,500 bbls/d (3,750 bbls/d net to us); upgrader construction is complete and commissioning underway
• Encouraging results from northeast BC shale gas production tests

Nexen delivered strong first quarter results, meeting production targets and achieving record earnings. We generated cash flow from operations of over one billion dollars for the second quarter in a row and our cash flow exceeded our capital investment by $253 million. Production averaged 267,000 boe/d (222,000 boe/d after royalties) as strong oil and gas production from our Buzzard field in the North Sea more than offset production outages at Syncrude. With solid production, attractive commodity prices and high operating margins, net income was a record $630 million.

Cash flow from operations totalled $1,039 million after $392 million in current income taxes. The majority of the income taxes were in the UK where Buzzard generated excellent returns from strong volumes and high cash margins. Current taxes in the fourth quarter of 2007 were significantly lower at $87 million as income from Buzzard was sheltered by tax pools which are now substantially utilized.

Our first quarter production volumes averaged 267,000 boe/d (222,000 boe/d after royalties) as all areas met or exceeded targets with the exception of Syncrude. During the quarter, Syncrude experienced downtime as a result of cold weather and unscheduled maintenance, reducing expected quarterly volumes by over 5,000 bbls/d. In the North Sea, Buzzard performed well and contributed 91,500 boe/d (212,000 boe/d gross) compared to 75,000 boe/d (174,000 boe/d gross) in the fourth quarter of 2007. After a year of operating experience, Buzzard start up issues are behind us and facility performance is now consistently exceeding our original design expectations. We have one week of scheduled maintenance downtime planned for Buzzard in each of the second and third quarters which will reduce production volumes slightly from the first quarter. In addition, the recent shut down of the Forties pipeline due to strike action at the Grangemouth refinery in Scotland caused us to shut-in production from Buzzard, Scott/Telford and Farragon. This will reduce our production volumes for the second quarter. For the next two quarters, we also expect Syncrude's volumes to remain at rates similar to the first quarter as two of their three cokers have planned turnarounds.

"With strong first quarter production and the ramp up of Long Lake and Ettrick later this year, we are well positioned to meet our annual guidance range of 260,000 boe/d to 280,000 boe/d," commented Fischer.

Increased Quarterly Dividend
The Board of Directors has declared an increase in the quarterly dividend to $0.05 per common share payable July 1, 2008, to shareholders of record on June 10, 2008. This doubles the dividend from the previous rate. Shareholders are advised that the dividend is an eligible dividend for Canadian Income Tax purposes.

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