National Oilwell Announces Retirement of Joel Staff as Chairman of the Board

HOUSTON, Apr 11, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- National-Oilwell, Inc. (NYSE:NOI) announced today that Joel V. Staff, Chairman of the Board of Directors, plans to retire as Chairman at the Company's Annual Meeting of Stockholders on May 15, 2002, but will continue to serve on the board and is standing for reelection at the Annual Meeting. The board of directors has also announced its intention to elect Merrill A. (Pete) Miller, Jr., as Chairman at that time. Miller will continue in his current role as President and Chief Executive Officer.

"My years at National Oilwell are a source of great pride to me and I look forward to continuing as a member of the board," commented Staff. "I believe our prospects for the future are excellent under the experienced leadership of Pete Miller and our senior management team."

"It is an honor to be chosen as Joel's successor as Chairman," stated Miller. "Under Joel's stewardship, National Oilwell grew dramatically in market capitalization and product and service offering. I am grateful for the Board's confidence and look forward to the opportunities ahead."

National Oilwell is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of comprehensive systems and components used in oil and gas drilling and production, as well as in providing supply chain integration services to the upstream oil and gas industry.

Statements made in this press release that are forward-looking in nature are intended to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and may involve risks and uncertainties. These statements may differ materially from actual future events or results. Readers are referred to documents filed by National Oilwell with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K, which identify significant risk factors which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements.