8-K

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                                    FORM 8-K

                                 CURRENT REPORT


     Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934


       Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): January 19, 1998
                                                         ----------------


                             PYR Energy Corporation
              ----------------------------------------------------
             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)



        Delaware                      0-20879                  95-4580642
- ----------------------------       ---------------        --------------------
(State or other jurisdiction      (Commission File           (IRS Employer
    of incorporation)                 Number)             Identification No.)



               1675 Broadway, Suite 1150, Denver, Colorado 80202
               ---------------------------------------------------
              (Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)



        Registrant's telephone number, including area code (303) 825-3748
                                                            -------------



Item 5. Other Events.
        --------------


     Press Release.  The press release of the Registrant dated January 19, 1998,
which is filed as an exhibit hereto, is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 7.  Financial Statements And Exhibits.
         ----------------------------------

     (c) Exhibits.

                                  Exhibit Index
                                  -------------

Exhibit
Number        Description
- ------        -----------

99.1      Press release dated January 19, 1998.



                                    SIGNATURE

     Pursuant to the  requirements  of the Securities  Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant  has duly  caused  this  report  to be  signed  on its  behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.


Date:  January 20, 1998                     PYR ENERGY CORPORATION



                                            By:  /s/  D. Scott Singdahlsen
                                                 -------------------------------
                                                 D. Scott Singdahlsen
                                                 President
                                             

EX-99.1

                                  EXHIBIT 99.1


On January 19, 1998, the Registrant issued the following press release:


           "PYR ENERGY SIGNS LETTER OF INTENT FOR ADDITIONAL CAPITAL

     DENVER -- PYR Energy  Corporation  (OTC EBB: PYRX) today  announced that it
has  signed a letter  of intent to issue up to  2,100,000  shares of its  common
stock in a private placement with a small group of investors at a price of $1.25
per share.  The Company expects to receive up to $2,625,000 on or before January
30, 1998.  Consummation of the private placement is subject to due diligence and
the signing of a definitive  purchase and sale  agreement.  The letter of intent
provides  that the  Company  will file a  registration  statement  covering  the
potential  resale of the shares by the purchasers.  Subsequent to this offering,
PYR will have 11.255 million common shares outstanding.

     "This offering will help to fund our ongoing exploration efforts, primarily
in California," said D. Scott Singdahlsen, president of PYR. "The capital adds a
new base of financial support for our long-term business plan and strategies."

     The Company also  announced  that on January 15, 1998,  its "A" warrants to
issue 2,047,500  shares of common stock expired  unexercised.  The Company's "B"
warrants to issue 2,047,500 shares at $1.75 will expire on April 15, 1998.

     Operationally,  PYR has  signed a 3-D  seismic  acquisition  contract  with
Western Geophysical, a division of Western Atlas International, Inc., to acquire
approximately 60 square miles of 3-D seismic data over the Company's  acreage in
the  southern  San  Joaquin  Basin  of  California.  Acquisition  of the data is
expected to commence in the first  quarter of calendar  1998.  Regarding the new
seismic,  Singdahlsen  said,  "We  are  excited  to  have  one of the  best  3-D
acquisition  companies  in the world  working  for us. We believe  advanced  3-D
technology  plays  a key  part  in our  team  of  geoscientists  unraveling  the
stratigraphic complexities inherent in this basin."

     PYR Energy Corporation currently has active exploration projects in the San
Joaquin Basin of California and in the Rocky Mountains.



Statements  in  this  press   release   involve  known  and  unknown  risks  and
uncertainties, which may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to
be  materially  different  from any future  performance  suggested in this press
release.  Further,  the Company  operates in an industry sector where securities
values are highly  volatile and may be  influenced by economic and other factors
beyond the  Company's  control.  In the context of  forward-looking  information
provided  for in this press  release,  please  refer to the  discussion  of risk
factors  detailed in the  Company's  filings  with the  Securities  and Exchange
Commission during the past 12 months



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