Gastar Exploration to Present at the IPAA Oil & Gas Investment Symposium.

HOUSTON, April 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Gastar Exploration Ltd. (NYSE Amex: GST and TSX: YGA) announced today that J. Russell Porter, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, will be presenting at the IPAA Oil & Gas Investment Symposium to be held on April 20 - 22, 2009, at the Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers in New York City.

The company presentation will be broadcast live over the Internet on Tuesday, April 21 at 8:45 a.m. Eastern Time. To listen to the audio webcast of the presentation and view accompanying presentation materials, visit the Investor Relations page of Gastar's web site at http://www.gastar.com/ and select Events/Presentations. A replay will be archived on the web site shortly after the presentation concludes.

About Gastar Exploration

Gastar Exploration Ltd. is an exploration and production company focused on finding and developing natural gas assets in North America and Australia. The Company pursues a strategy combining deep natural gas exploration and development with lower risk CBM and shale resource development. The Company owns and operates exploration and development acreage in the deep Bossier gas play of East Texas and Marcellus Shale play in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Gastar's CBM activities are conducted within the Powder River Basin of Wyoming and concentrated on more than 6.0 million gross acres controlled by Gastar and its joint development partners in Australia's Gunnedah Basin (PEL 238, PEL 433 and PEL 434) located in New South Wales.

   Company Contact:   Gastar Exploration Ltd.   Michael Gerlich, Vice President and CFO   713-739-1800 / mgerlich@gastar.com    Investor Relations Counsel:   Lisa Elliott / Anne Pearson   DRG&E  : 713-529-6600   lelliott@drg-e.com / apearson@drg-e.com  

CONTACT: Michael Gerlich, Vice President and CFO of Gastar Exploration Ltd., +1-713-739-1800, mgerlich@gastar.com; or Investor Relations Counsel, Lisa Elliott, lelliott@drg-e.com, or Anne Pearson, apearson@drg-e.com, both of DRG&E, +1-713-529-6600, for Gastar Exploration Ltd.