Bob Wigley is an investor and entrepreneur with extensive international financial services experience. He spent more than 10 years with Merrill Lynch, serving most recently as Chairman of Merrill Lynch Europe, Middle East and Africa until resigning in January 2009 following the completion of the takeover by Bank of America.

“Bob will bring extraordinary breadth of experience to Orca’s Board,” said David Lyons, Orca’s Chairman and CEO. “He is widely recognized for his ability to lead in new business, educational and community ventures and his advice is much sought after within the global financial services community.”

A former member of the Court of the Bank of England, he is the non-executive Chairman of Yell Group plc and Chairman of Sovereign Reversions plc. He is Deputy Chairman of Business in the Community (the UK’s leading corporate social responsibility organization) and sits on the UK Government’s National Council for Education Excellence. He is Chairman of the UK’s National Education Employer Partnership Task Force, a Visiting Fellow of Oxford University and a member of the Boards of two venture capital firms. Bob is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and has a business degree and an honorary doctorate from Bath University.

The information circular-proxy statement of Orca for the Shareholder Meeting will be mailed to shareholders of Orca on or about May 28, 2010.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

CALGARY, June 7 /CNW/ – Gran Tierra Energy Inc. (NYSE Amex: GTE, TSX: GTE), a company focused on oil exploration and production in South America, today announced initial drilling results from Moqueta-1. Oil and gas shows were recorded through the Villeta T Sandstone and the Caballos Formation with electric logs indicating a total potential hydrocarbon net pay of 108 feet in the two primary reservoir zones combined. In additional to the two primary reservoir targets, the Villeta Lower U Sandstone also recorded hydrocarbon shows with a potential hydrocarbon net pay of 25 feet. As a result of these initial indications, a program is being designed to test the fluid content and productivity of the zones. This test program is expected to start immediately and take approximately three weeks to complete.

“We are extremely pleased with the initial results from the first well in our 2010 exploration program,” said Dana Coffield, President and Chief Executive Officer of Gran Tierra Energy Inc. “In light of these early positive results, a comprehensive flow test program is being designed and implemented for the prospective zones. In addition, the existing well pad is being prepared for drilling of a delineation well with a deviated well bore in the event the flow test is successful.”

Moqueta-1 Exploration Well, Chaza Block

The Moqueta-1 exploration well, located 5 kilometers north of the Costayaco Field, spud on May 16, 2010, and reached total measured depth (MD) in basement at 4,080 feet or 4,073 feet true vertical depth (TVD) on May 29, 2010. The same sandstone reservoir sequences encountered in the Costayaco Field were found in Moqueta-1, including the Villeta T Sandstone and the underlying Caballos Formation. Oil and gas shows were encountered in both reservoirs during drilling. Log interpretations from data acquired after drilling indicate the presence of reservoir sandstones in the T Sandstone beginning at 3,684 feet MD (3,677 feet TVD) with an approximate potential net pay thickness of 55 feet, and in the Caballos Formation beginning at 3,825 feet MD (3,818 feet TVD) with approximately 53 feet of potential net pay interpreted from the well logs. No oil-water contact is evident on the well logs in any of the reservoir zones.

Pressure gradient data obtained with the wireline testing tool indicates the U sand is gas bearing with approximately 25 feet of potential net gas pay. In addition, the entire T Sandstone and the uppermost Caballos sandstone also appears gas bearing. The Lower Caballos interval appears to have a gross oil column of 40 feet, of which 26 feet appears to be net oil pay. No gas-water or oil-water contact is apparent from the pressure gradient data. Subject to successful testing and subsequent delineation drilling, there remains potential for additional oil down-dip.

Moqueta-1 is the first of seven exploration wells budgeted for 2010 in the Putumayo Basin of Colombia. Taruka-1 in the Piedemonte Sur block is the next exploration well scheduled to be drilled in the 2010 program and Gran Tierra Energy expects to utilize the same drilling rig as is currently being used at Moqueta-1.

Other Colombia Operations

Costayaco-11 has been drilled in the northern portion of the Costayaco field, and is expected to be used as a Caballos producer and as a water-injector to provide pressure maintenance in the T-Sandstone reservoir.

Two seismic acquisition programs are ongoing. The 92 square kilometer 3D Rumiyaco program in the Rumiyaco Block and the 76 square kilometer 3D Florida West program in the Azar block are being acquired to support drilling prospects for 2010 and 2011. Additional seismic programs are budgeted for the Putumayo area in preparation for 2011 exploration drilling.

Peru Operations Update

Gran Tierra Energy is initiating seismic crew mobilization to Block 128 to begin 480 kilometers of 2D seismic data acquisition on Blocks 122 and 128. Exploration drilling on up to four prospects in Blocks 122 and 128 is expected to take place in the third and fourth quarter of 2010.

Argentina Operations Update

The re-entry and sidetrack of the VM.x-1001 well in the Valle Morado Block in the Noroeste Basin is ahead of schedule and is expected to commence drilling in July. Operations for access road improvements and location construction are approximately 60% complete. This sidetrack is planned to be drilled to 20,177 feet MD (or 19,964 feet TVD) to test the productive capacity of the Valle Morado gas field.

In the Santa Victoria block, the contractor tendering process has been completed for a 150 km2 3D and 188 km 2D seismic acquisition program in the third quarter of 2010 to define structural and stratigraphic traps in a gas-condensate trend identified from existing seismic data. Environmental impact assessment permit approvals are nearly complete. Seismic data acquisition is expected to be initiated in August, 2010. This data is expected to be used for mapping potential exploration drilling opportunities for 2011.

About Gran Tierra Energy Inc.

Gran Tierra Energy Inc. is an international oil and gas exploration and production company, headquartered in Calgary, Canada, incorporated in the United States, trading on the NYSE Amex Exchange (GTE) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (GTE), and operating in South America. Gran Tierra Energy holds interests in producing and prospective properties in Argentina, Colombia and Peru, and has opened a business development office in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Gran Tierra Energy has a strategy that focuses on establishing a portfolio of producing properties, plus production enhancement and exploration opportunities to provide a base for future growth.

Gran Tierra Energy’s Securities and Exchange Commission filings are available on a web site maintained by the Securities and Exchange Commission at http://www.sec.gov and on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com.

Forward Looking Statements:

This news release contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (collectively, “forward-looking statements”) under the meaning of applicable securities laws, including Canadian Securities Administrators’ National Instrument 51-102 – Continuous Disclosure Obligations and the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The use of the words “expect”, “plan” and “scheduled” identify forward-looking statements. In particular, but without limiting the foregoing, this news release contains forward-looking statements regarding: the expected timing of the Moqueta-1 test program, the expected drilling of Taruka-1, the expected use of Costayaco-11, the expected commencement of drilling of VM.x-1001, and the expected timing of initiation of the acquisition of seismic data in the Santa Victoria block and its expected use.

The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements, including, among others: Gran Tierra Energy’s operations are located in South America, and unexpected problems can arise due to guerilla activity, technical difficulties and operational difficulties which impact or delay its testing and drilling operations; geographic, political and weather conditions can impede testing and drilling operations; and the risk that current global economic and credit market conditions may impact oil prices and oil consumption more than Gran Tierra Energy currently predicts, which could cause Gran Tierra Energy to modify its exploration activities. Further information on potential factors that could affect Gran Tierra Energy are included in risks detailed from time to time in Gran Tierra Energy’s Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including, without limitation, under the caption “Risk Factors” in Gran Tierra Energy’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed May 10, 2010.

Sarah Palin is the one allied with the campaign “Drill, baby, drill”, but in an inventive merger the President has laid claims for it too-very nearly. In a bold attempt to boost the domestic oil and gas production, he has opened up large offshore areas along the southern Atlantic coastline, the eastern areas of the Gulf of Mexico and northern shore of Alaska for drilling.

The U.S. has had a long-term moratorium on oil exploration for almost twenty years. The move towards more exploration is aimed to reduce oil imports, obtain more revenue from lease and licence and to whip up support for the comprehensive energy and climate legislation.

As expected there was an angry backlash from environmentalist. Detractors say the move:Contributes to global warming with increase in pollutionKicks in fears of chemical and oil spills Threatens coastal communities dependent on the seaAffects the habitat of endangered polar bears, whales and other wildlifeWill open up more areas like the west coast for oil explorationWon’t bring in energy security or reduce oil imports

“This is not a decision that I’ve made lightly” Mr Obama said, aware of the objection from environmentalists. “But the bottom line is this: given our energy needs, in order to sustain economic growth, produce jobs, and keep our businesses competitive, we’re going to need to harness traditional sources of fuel even as we ramp up production of new sources of renewable, home-grown energy.”

In the meantime, supporters of the move, for their part, see this as an attempt to decrease dependency on foreign fuel. They say, it adds jobs and brings in more energy security; that when oil is produced locally, it helps the economy with more income and demand for goods.

The announcement comes as a ‘give and take’ policy to garner support and momentum for a new energy and climate bill that proposes cuts in green house gases. The senate is expected to take up the climate bill shortly, almost the last chance before the mid-term elections. The bill has already been passed by the House of Representatives, and the President is hoping to get Republican support in the senate. The US Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said that the move was more to give energy support to the American people as the country was about sixty percent dependent on foreign oil, and that the proposals still weren’t sure to win support from senators close to the oil industry. Republican support or not, ten Democratic senators from the coastal states have already signed a joint letter expressing opposition to the exploration.

Already the President has made major concessions on coal and nuclear power to garner support for the bill. In the announcement unveiled at Andrews Air Force Base Mr Obama had also included plans to expand the production of nuclear power to “move us from an economy that runs on fossil fuels and foreign oil to one that relies more on home-grown fuels” and clean energy. Only last month, the President had announced a $50 billion loan guarantee to build eight new nuclear power plants.

Said Mr. Obama, “While our politics has remained entrenched along worn divides, the ground has shifted beneath our feet. Around the world, countries are seeking an edge in the global marketplace by investing in new ways of producing and saving energy.” Further he added, “The only way this transition will succeed is if it strengthens our economy in the short term and the long run. To fail to recognise this reality would be a mistake.”

Other energy proposals include ordering of 5,000 hybrid vehicles to the federal fleet and more stringent fuel economy standards for new cars. “This rule will not only save drivers money; it will save 1.8 billion barrels of oil,” Mr Obama said. “That’s like taking 58 million cars off the road for an entire year.”

Drilling already taking place in the western and central areas in the Gulf of Mexico would come now closer to just 125 miles from Florida. But officials said that a buffer would be put in place off the Florida shore line so that the rigs aren’t visible from the land. The first drill would take place off the coast of Virginia within two years. However, it all depends on the Congress lifting the moratorium on drilling.

The administration, in effect, is thus adopting some measures put forward by President Bush, which were challenged in court on environmental basis. The Interior Department had set aside the proposal after President Obama came to power. But one notable difference from Bush’s plan is exception given to the ecologically sensitive Bristol Bay in south-western Alaska, which has several endangered species of whales and fishes. The moratorium would also remain for the Pacific coast from California to Washington. Of course, the Oil companies aren’t happy with the exempted areas, either.

The Interior Department says the untapped oil would meet three years of U.S. oil demands. Though at this point the oil estimates aren’t clear, the reserves would be relatively smaller than the Department’s estimates, and would not impact the price of oil. A clear picture will emerge only after the exploration begins. And, it will take years, anywhere between 14-16 years, before the oil is seen. For a comparison, EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook, for March 2010 shows that domestic crude oil production averaged 5.32 million bbl/d in 2009, up about 370,000 bbl/d from 2008. The projected growth in crude oil production this year is by 210000 bbl/d.

This move for oil drilling isn’t surprising as during his presidential campaign in 2008, President Obama had said that he supported expanding offshore drilling for oil and gas. A senior counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity, Brendan Cummings, said the announcement was “all too typical of what we have seen so far from President Obama – promises of change, a year of ‘deliberation,’ and ultimately, adoption of flawed and outdated Bush policies as his own”.

If not oil, then what?

In fact, the US is the third largest crude producer in the world, but imports almost 57 percent of the oil it needs. The top fifteen countries in the list of crude oil imports to the US last year were, are Canada, Mexico, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Algeria, Iraq, Angola, Brazil, Colombia, Russia, Kuwait, Azerbaijan, Congo, and Ecuador.

According to EIA, there is substantial decline in production from oil fields in the federal Gulf of Mexico and Alaska. Further, the US liquid fuel consumption was a staggering 18.7 million bbl/d in 2009 even when it declined by 810000 bbl/d to previous years.

So, there is need for oil and do we have an alternative at present? The pill is bitter to swallow but the answer is ‘no’. To limit the opposition to oil drilling in the U.S. alone is to see a small picture of the whole problem. Oil drilling wherever it’s done (not only in the U.S., which has better resources to tackle problems of the kind) could cause ecological damage, whatever precautions taken. The proposed explorations will not markedly reduce the dependency on foreign oil. Neither are they ‘the’ solution for the energy needs.

Hence, what’s to be done is to decrease the dependency on oil. Small but significant steps are the need for the hour with increased investments in safe and clean renewable sources of energy. This announcement, at best, is just a temporary measure, whichever way you think.