Torchlight Completes Drilling First Horizontal Well in its Permian (Midland) Basin Acreage

PLANO, TX--(Marketwired - July 18, 2017) - Torchlight Energy Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRCH) ("Torchlight" or the "Company"), today announced that it has completed the drilling stage of the Flying B Ranch #3H well. The horizontal leg at Total Depth was ~8,300 feet in the Wolfcamp A Bench. Preliminary indications from mud log and gamma ray MWD readings indicated a consistent exposure to the planned pay zone over the entire length of the lateral. The Company plans to employ a 25 stage frac over a 5,000-foot section of the lateral wellbore where casing was successfully set and cemented in place. Frac design will be consistent with the latest technology being utilized by others in the Midland Basin.

"I am pleased with the drilling program delivered by Torchlight's operating partner Maverick on this well," stated Rich Masterson, project Geologist. "We have managed to stay in zone and the logs indicate that we should be able to frac this well in a manner consistent with other Midland Basin wells targeting the Wolfcamp A interval. We encountered good shows of oil in the samples and good gas on the mud log chromatograph."

"We are excited to have completed the drilling phase of our first horizontal well in the Permian Basin and look forward to delivering the frac to bring this well onto production," stated John Brda, Torchlight's CEO. "We are scheduling the procedure on a 'first available' basis and will target the 5000 feet of Wolfcamp A to create a baseline for 'barrels per 1000 feet of lateral' comparisons to other Midland Basin Wolfcamp A completions. Our first-generation stimulation technique will be evaluated and refined for future wells in the project. Ultimately we are targeting maximum production with lowest declines."

While drilling, the Company captured images and video which can be viewed on the Company website at http://www.torchlightenergy.com/current-projects/midland-basin.

Additionally, Torchlight stimulated the Flying B Ranch #2 vertical test well in the Leonard formation and is in the cleanup and testing phase of this secondary target horizontal interval. Torchlight will continue to report results as available.

About Torchlight Energy

Torchlight Energy Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRCH), based in Plano, Texas, is a high growth oil and gas Exploration and Production (E&P) company with a primary focus on acquisition and development of highly profitable domestic oil fields. The company has assets focused in West and Central Texas where their targets are established plays such as the Permian Basin. For additional information on the Company, please visit www.torchlightenergy.com.

Forward Looking Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in such statements. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including risks associated with the Company's ability to obtain additional capital in the future to fund planned expansion, the demand for oil and natural gas, general economic factors, competition in the industry and other factors that could cause actual results to be materially different from those described herein as anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. The Company is under no obligation (and expressly disclaims any such obligation) to update or alter its forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.