Exhibit 99.1
 
 1615 Poydras Street · New Orleans, LA 70112
    
    Financial & Media Contact:David P. Joint
(504) 582-4203
 McMoRan Exploration Co. Updates
Gulf of Mexico Exploration & Development Activities
    Shallow Water, Ultra-Deep Exploration Update
 Davy Jones offset appraisal
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These potential hydrocarbon bearing zones are the first
Cretaceous sandstones and limestones encountered offshore Central Louisiana on the Gulf of
Mexico Shelf.
   Blackbeard East
   Lafitte
 Shallow Water, Deep Gas Exploration Update
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Boudin
 Blueberry Hill
 Brazos A-23
 Laphroaig
 WEBCAST INFORMATION
   CAUTIONARY STATEMENT: This press release contains forward-looking statements that
involve a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. We caution readers
that those statements are not guarantees of future performance or exploration and development
success, and our actual exploration experience and future financial results may differ
materially from those anticipated, projected or assumed in the forward-looking statements. Such
forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding various oil
and gas discoveries, oil and gas exploration, development and production activities, capital
expenditures, reclamation costs, anticipated and potential production and flow rates, and other
statements that are not historical facts. No assurances can be given that any of the events
anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so,
what impact they will have on our results of operations or financial condition. Important
factors that can cause actual results to differ materially from the results anticipated by
forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those associated with general economic and business
conditions, failure to realize expected
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value creation from acquired properties, exercise of
preferential rights to purchase, variations in the market demand for, and prices of, oil and
natural gas, drilling results, unanticipated fluctuations in flow rates of producing wells due
to mechanical or operational issues (including those experienced by wells operated by third
parties where we are a participant), oil and natural gas reserve expectations, the potential
adoption of new governmental regulations, failure of third party partners to fulfill their
commitments, the ability to satisfy future cash obligations and environmental costs, adverse
conditions, such as high temperatures and pressure that could lead to mechanical failures or
increased costs, the ability to hold current or future lease acreage rights, the ability to
satisfy future cash obligations and environmental costs, access to capital to fund drilling
activities, as well as other general exploration and development risks and hazards, and other
factors described in more detail in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors included in our Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 filed with the SEC.
 The SEC requires oil and gas companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose proved reserves
that a company has demonstrated by actual production or conclusive formation tests to be
economically and legally producible under existing economic and operating conditions. Beginning
with year-end reserves for 2010, the SEC permits oil and gas companies, in their filings with the
SEC, to disclose probable and possible reserves, as such terms are defined by the SEC. We use
certain phrases and terms in this press release, such as gross unrisked potential and resource
potential  which the SECs guidelines prohibit us from including in filings with the SEC Gross
unrisked potential and resource potential do not take into account the certainty of resource
recovery, which is contingent on exploration success, technical improvements in drilling access,
commerciality and other factors, and are therefore not indicative of expected future resource
recovery and should not be relied upon. We urge you to consider closely the disclosure of proved
reserves included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 filed with
the SEC.
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