• Intersection of thick, high grade mineralization at mid-to-lower deposit levels
  • Magistral North -- SAN-109A 31.75m at 3.4oz/t Ag, 4.86% Pb & 9.96% Zn
  • Magistral Central -- SAN-123 41.25m at 2oz/t Ag, 0.8% Pb, 8.2% Zn & 0.11% Cu
• Intersection of significant mineralization beyond the current resource model at depth and along strike
  • Magistral South -- SAN-124 10.85m at 10% Zn
• Discovery new zones of mineralization, in particular high-grade broadly E-W trending foot-wall zones
  • Magistral North SAN-158: 6.75m at 2.9oz/t Ag, 7.22% Pb, 6.83% Zn & 0.18% Cu
  • Magistral Central SAN-126: 6.75m at 2.9oz/t Ag, 4.12% Pb, 3.76% Zn & 0.1% Cu
• Intersection of significant mineralization between the Magistral North and Central deposits -- SAN-142: 1.6m at 6.2oz/t Ag, 9.08% Pb, 12.17% Zn & 0.39% Cu; SAN-143: 1.9m at 7.8oz/t Ag, 11.32% Pb, 12.84% Zn & 0.98% Cu
• Mineralization has been extended to approximately 350-to-400 metres vertically on all three Magistral deposits and remains open. The deepest intersections to date are as follows:
  • Magistral North -- SAN-096: 6.3m at 1.8oz/t Ag, 4.74% Pb & 4.18% Zn
  • Magistral Central -- SAN-165: 20.45m at 0.02% Pb, 7.73% Zn, & 0.12% Cu
  • Magistral South -- SAN-159: 4.4m at 0.9oz/t Ag, 0.55% Pb & 8.42% Zn
• Intersection of significant mineralization on the Puajanca South zone with the latest hole, SAN-155 returning 4.3m at 1.8oz/t Ag, 2.91% Pb and 5.24% Zn. The Puajanca North prospect located some 450 metres to the north has returned surface values averaging 6.4oz/t Ag, 15.59% Pb and 7.18% Zn and is interpreted to represent high-level 'leakage' from an underlying polymetallic target.
• Mineral system and empirical analysis suggests that all mineralized bodies have significant additional depth potential -- conservatively modelled to range from 300-to-500 additional vertical metres.

• Drill hole SAN-149, collared on the northern margin of the Magistral North deposit, intersected a thick interval of very high grade silver mineralization - 8.1 metres at 344.7g/t (10 oz/t) silver, 5.38% lead and 9% zinc within which higher grade intervals occur. The hole was designed to test an area adjacent to an interpreted major ~NE-SW trending feeder zone. This structure is traceable on surface approximately 1.1 km to the north-east where it also appears to control the Puajanca zone. As such it represents a significant high-grade silver structural target and will be aggressively pursued by future exploration programs.
  
  
• Magistral North drilling continues to deliver multiple, thick polymetallic intercepts in a zone previously considered to be composed of lower-grade mineralization; Drill hole SAN-144 returned 15 metres at 52.6 g/t (1.5 oz/t) silver, 4.47% lead and 4.37% zinc.
  
  
• Geotechnical and condemnation drilling in an area of potential ramp access between the Magistral North and Central deposits intersected numerous zones of sulphide mineralization. The broadly E-W to NE-SW trending 'feeder' zones comprise envelopes of up to +20 metres width containing lower grade mineralization within which narrow high grade structures and fracture zones occur. Drill holes SAN-142, 143 and 145 intersected zones of high-grade mineralization ranging from 1.5-to-1.9 metres width with grades ranging from 130.7 g/t (3.8 oz/t) to 268.4 g/t (7.8 oz/t) silver, 8.4% to 11.32% lead, 6.18% to 12.84% zinc and 0.24% to 0.98% copper. Mineralization remains open to the East and future exploration programs will further examine this potential.
  
  
• Magistral South returned multiple zones of zinc-rich mineralization in areas outside of the current resource estimate.
  
  
• Numerous other high priority targets and prospects remain to be drill tested: the Puajanca South prospect and the past-producing Santander Pipe both remain open at depth. In addition, several high-priority targets containing out-cropping mineralization and/or extensive alteration remain to be drill-tested -- for example, the El Toro prospect where higher-level alteration, 'productive' gangue and trace base metal mineralization occur in a structurally controlled zone over 1-km long and 150-metre wide, a similar surface expression to the currently defined Magistral deposits.

		PROJECT BACKGROUND The Santander silver-lead-zinc mine project is located approximately 215 km by road from Lima, in the western extent of Peru's world-class Central Polymetallic Belt. Site infrastructure includes a fully refurbished 200-man camp and the Tingo hydroelectric power-station located 17 km down-valley to the west. The Company commenced exploration at Santander in November 2007 discovering four new high-grade silver-lead-zinc replacement and massive sulphide bodies to date. Mineralization remains open in all three Magistral deposits, the Puajanca zone and the past-producing Santander Pipe, and numerous high-priority targets remain to be tested on the Company's large, 100%-owned land package.
Figure 1. Magistral drillhole locations

• Magistral Central returns thickest, highest-grade zinc intersection to-date on the property (9 metres at 18.52% zinc) in a zone previously considered to be comprised of low-grade mineralization.

• Magistral South returns the highest-grade intercepts to date from the zone (10.85 metres at 10% zinc). The hole was testing a deposit plunge concept and occurs outside the presently defined resource envelope.

• Magistral North footwall zone continues to grow and expands upon the recently announced high-grade footwall intersections (see NR-10-2 for details). Predicted Magistral Central footwall 'feeder' mineralization also intersected.

• Latest drilling opens up the Magistral deposits in multiple directions: Magistral North remains open at depth and to east-northeast, Magistral Central remains open at depth, to the south and to the east, Magistral South remains open at depth and to the north, and to the southeast near surface.

• Numerous other high priority targets and prospects remain to be drill tested: the Puajanca South prospect and the Santander Pipe both remain open at depth. In addition, several high-priority targets containing out-cropping mineralization and/or extensive alteration remain to be drill-tested -- for example, the El Toro prospect where higher-level alteration, 'productive' gangue and trace base metal mineralization occur in a structurally controlled zone over 1 kilometre long and 150 metres wide -- a similar surface expression to the currently defined Magistral deposits.

Table 1: Summary assay results -- Magistral Deposits

DETAIL The aim of the current round of drilling has been four-fold: in-fill drilling to provide additional intercepts in areas of less well-defined mineralization; to expand known mineralization - in particular along predicted deposit plunges; to complete various condemnation and geotechnical holes to aid mine planning and detailed engineering by our partners Glencore; and, finally to prove up the known E-W trending footwall 'feeder' zones. In this regard, the results to-date have been extremely successful.