Exhibit 99


For Immediate Release                     For Further Information Contact:
Wednesday, April 17, 2002                 Robert E. Phaneuf
                                          Vice President - Corporate Development
                                          918/592-0101

                    VINTAGE PETROLEUM ANNOUNCES $250 MILLION
                            OFFERING OF SENIOR NOTES

     Tulsa, Oklahoma - Vintage Petroleum, Inc. announced today that it is
offering $250 million of senior notes due 2012, to be sold through a Rule 144A
offering. If the offering is completed, all of the net proceeds will be used to
repay a portion of the outstanding indebtedness under the company's revolving
bank facility.

     The notes will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended (the "Act"), and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent
registration or pursuant to an applicable exemption from the registration
requirements of the Act. The notes will be offered and sold only to qualified
institutional buyers in reliance on Rule 144A of the Act and certain persons in
offshore transactions in reliance on Regulation S under the Act. This press
release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to
buy the proposed notes.

     Vintage Petroleum, Inc. is an independent energy company engaged in the
acquisition, exploitation, exploration and development of oil and gas properties
and the marketing of natural gas and crude oil. The company is headquartered in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, and its common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange
under the symbol VPI.