Changes in Petrorio's Management

RIO DE JANEIRO, Jan. 29, 2015 /CNW/ -PetroRio¹, the new brand of HRT Participações em Petróleo S.A. (the "Company" or "PetroRio") (BM&FBOVESPA: HRTP3¹, TSX-V: HRP¹), hereby informs its shareholders and the market in general that, at a Board of Directors meeting held on this date, the Board Members were informed of the resignations of  Ricardo Bottas Dourado from the position of Chief Financial Officer, and  Eduardo Laranjeira Jácome from the position of Organizational Management and Investor Relations Officer. During this same meeting, the Board Members unanimously approved the appointment of Guilherme Marques to fill the position of Chief Financial and Investor Relations Officer.

Effective February 1, 2015, Guilherme Marques will assume the responsibilities of his position and his term in office will be unified with the other Executive Officers, which runs until May 10, 2015.

The Company's Executive Board will now be composed of the following members: Milton Franke, Chief Executive Officer, Guilherme Marques, Chief Financial and Investor Relations Officer, Ricardo Wagner, Chief Legal Officer and Jose Carlos Pedrosa, Business Development Officer.

The organizational changes reinforce the alignment of PetroRio's Management with the strategy that has been rigorously implemented and that prioritizes production increases through production asset acquisitions, reduced production costs and corporate expenses, the elimination of exploration risks and the creation of value for shareholders.

¹ The Company's corporate name will remain HRT Participações em Petróleo S.A., until the new name is proposed by Management for shareholder approval at the next Shareholders' Meeting. The Company's shares and GDSs will continue to be traded under the tickers HRTP3 on the BM&FBOVESPA and HRP on TSX-V until the new corporate name is approved and the request to change the tickers is authorized by the BM&FBOVESPA and the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM). The Company will keep its shareholders and the market in general informed of the progress of this process.

Sedar Profile # 00031536
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About PetroRio
PetroRio, through its subsidiaries, holds a 60% participating interest and it is also the operator of the Polvo Field, which is located in the southern portion of the Campos Basin, at 100km east of the city of Cabo Frio, Rio de Janeiro. PetroRio has Brazil's seventh largest daily production of barrels of oil equivalent (boe), with 20.3º API, deriving from three producing reservoirs. PetroRio is the owner, through its subsidiaries, of "Polvo A" fixed platform and a 3.000HP drilling rig, currently in operation in the field, being the platform connected to the "Polvo FPSO" vessel, with capacity to segregate hydrocarbons and water treatment, oil storage and offloading. Polvo Field license covers an area of approximately 134km², with several prospects with potential for further explorations. Additionally, PetroRio holds a 55% interest and is the operator of 17 exploration blocks in the Solimões Basin, and also operates ten exploration blocks off the Namibian coast, in the Orange and Walvis sub-basins. PetroRio is committed to minimizing any possible environmental impacts on the sites where it acts. Our commitment to the local communities is towards health conditions, safety and quality of life. For more information, please visit the Company's website: www.petroriosa.com.br

Disclaimer
This news release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this news release are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding our drilling and seismic plans, operating costs, acquisitions of equipment, expectations of finding oil, the quality of oil we expect to produce and our other plans and objectives. Readers can identify many of these statements by looking for words such as "expects", "believe", "hope" and "will" and similar words or the negative thereof. Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. By their nature, forward-looking statements require us to make assumptions and, accordingly, forward-looking statements are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. We caution readers of this news release not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements because a number of factors may cause actual future circumstances, results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from the plans, expectations, estimates or intentions expressed in the forward-looking statements and the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements.

The following risk factors could affect our operations: the contingent resource and prospective resource evaluation reports involving a significant degree of uncertainty and being based on projections that may not prove to be accurate; inherent risks to the exploration and production of oil and natural gas; limited operating history as an oil and natural gas exploration and production company; drilling and other operational hazards; breakdown or failure of equipment or processes; contractor or operator errors; non-performance by third party contractors; labor disputes, disruptions or declines in productivity; increases in materials or labor costs; inability to attract sufficient labor; requirements for significant capital investment and maintenance expenses which HRT may not be able to finance; cost overruns and delays; exposure to fluctuations in currency and commodity prices; political and economic conditions in Namibia and Brazil; complex laws that can affect the cost, manner or feasibility of doing business; environmental, safety and health regulation which may become stricter in the future and lead to an increase in liabilities and capital expenditures, including indemnity and penalties for environmental damage; early termination, non-renewal and other similar provisions in concession contracts; and competition. We caution that this list of factors is not exhaustive and that, when relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions, investors and others should also carefully consider other uncertainties and potential events. The forward-looking statements herein are made based on the assumption that our plans and operations will not be affected by such risks, but that, if our plans and operations are affected by such risks, the forward-looking statements may become inaccurate.

The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by applicable securities laws, we do not undertake to update such forward-looking statements.

SOURCE HRT Participações em Petróleo S.A.