Arabian American Development Regretfully Announces Passing of Chairman Emeritus Jack Crichton

DALLAS, Dec. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Arabian American Development Co. (OTC Bulletin Board: ARSD) regretfully announces that John Alston "Jack" Crichton died at his home in Dallas on December 10, 2007. He was 91.

Mr. Crichton was Chairman of the Board of Arabian American Development Co. from its inception in 1967 until June 2007 when he became Chairman Emeritus. He also served as Chief Executive Officer of the Company from 1967 until February 1994. He was an international petroleum consultant, engineer, geologist, and oil and gas executive. Additionally, he served as President of Crichton & Co., a petroleum and mining consulting and management firm in Dallas, Texas and as a Director to several gas and energy companies. He received a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering from Texas A&M University and an M.S. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Mr. Crichton served during the Second World War in the U.S. Army as Special Agent OSS in Europe, where he was awarded the Bronze Star, Five Battle Stars and numerous other Citations of Merit. He was a retired Colonel in the US Army Reserves. In 1964 he was a Republican candidate for governor in the state of Texas.

"We would like to extend our sincere condolences to Jack's family and want them to know what a driving force he was to Arabian American Development Co. from the very beginning," said Nick Carter, Secretary and Treasurer of Arabian American Development Co., and President of the petrochemical segment. "He will be greatly missed along with the depth of his professional experience, knowledge and counsel."

A memorial service celebrating Mr. Crichton's life will be held Saturday, December 15 at 1 p.m. in the main sanctuary of Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church, Preston Road at Walnut Hill, Dallas, TX. If desired, donations may be made to the Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church Foundation, 9800 Preston Road, Dallas 75230, or to the Texas A&M Foundation, 401 George Bush Drive, College Station, TX 77840-2811.

About Arabian American Development Co.

Arabian American owns and operates a petrochemical facility located in southeast Texas just north of Beaumont, Texas, specializing in high purity petrochemical solvents and other solvent type manufacturing. Arabian American also has a mining project in Saudi Arabia which is under development and is expected to produce economic quantities of zinc, copper, gold, and silver when it is put into production.

Safe Harbor

Statements in this release that are not historical facts are forward looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward looking statements are based upon management's belief as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. Because such statements are based upon expectations as to future economic performance and are not statements of fact, actual results may differ from those projected. These risks, as well as others, are discussed in greater detail in Arabian American's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Arabian American's annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 and the Company's subsequent Quarterly Report Form 10-Q.

     Company Contact:   Nick Carter, President, Secretary and Treasurer
                        (409) 385-8300
                        ncarter@southhamptonrefining.com

     Investor Contact:  Cameron Donahue or Brett Maas
                        Hayden Communications
                        (651) 653-1854
                        cameron@haydenir.com

SOURCE Arabian American Development Co.