SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
__________________________
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) April 2, 2004
Berry Petroleum Company
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware 1-9735 77-0079387
(State or other (Commission IRS Employer
jurisdiction of File Number) Identification No.
incorporation)
5201 Truxtun Avenue, Suite 300 Bakersfield, CA 93309
(Address of principal executive offices)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code (661) 616-3900
N/A
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
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Item 9. Regulation FD Disclosure
(c) Exhibits
The following Exhibits are hereby filed as part of this Current
Report on Form 8-K:
Exhibit 99.1 Press Release dated April 2, 2004 regarding the
Registrant's naming Robert Heinemann as chairman of the board.
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be
signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.
BERRY PETROLEUM COMPANY
By /s/ Kenneth A. Olson
Name: Kenneth A. Olson
Title: Corporate Secretary
and Treasurer
April 2, 2004
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News Release
Berry Petroleum Company Phone (661) 616-3900
5201 Truxtun Avenue, Suite 300 E-mail: ir@bry.com
Bakersfield, California 93309-0640 Internet: www.bry.com
Contacts: Jerry V. Hoffman, President and CEO
Ralph J. Goehring, Senior Vice President & CFO
BERRY PETROLEUM NAMES ROBERT F. HEINEMANN CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
Bakersfield, CA - April 2, 2004 - Berry Petroleum Company (NYSE:BRY)
announced that effective April 1, 2004, Mr. Robert F. Heinemann has
been named chairman of the board. Mr. Heinemann joined the board of
directors in 2002 and is currently a consultant in the energy
industry. From 2000 until 2002, Mr. Heinemann served as senior vice
president and chief technology officer of Halliburton Company and
prior to 2000, he served in various positions for Mobil Oil
Corporation, including vice president of Mobil Technology Company and
general manager of the Mobil Exploration and Producing Technical
Center. Mr. Heinemann's technical experience is in reservoir
engineering and he holds a doctorate in chemical engineering from
Vanderbilt University. Mr. Heinemann is a non-employee independent
director.
Mr. Heinemann stated, "I am honored to be asked to serve as chairman
of the board of Berry Petroleum Company which is a well respected
independent producer in the energy industry. I look forward to
assisting Berry's excellent management team led by Jerry Hoffman and
the board of directors in continuing Berry's ongoing achievement of
its strategic objectives."
Mr. Hoffman, president and chief executive officer, stated, "Our
board of directors has always diligently performed their duties on
behalf of the shareholders of this Company. The board has carefully
considered all elements of good corporate governance and has
unanimously concluded that in today's environment, the Company would
be well served by having an independent non-employee director serve
as the chairman of the board. The Company is most fortunate to have
a highly qualified, experienced individual such as Bob Heinemann
agree to serve in that role. I look forward to working closely with
Bob as Berry continues its efforts to meet its growth objectives and
achieve ever increasing shareholder value."
Berry Petroleum Company is a publicly traded independent oil and gas
production and exploitation company with its headquarters in
Bakersfield, California.
This release may contain descriptions of the Company's expectations
regarding future business activities. These forward-looking
statements are made in reliance upon safe harbor provisions of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Accordingly, actual
results may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-
looking statements.
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