08 May 2008
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Ormonde Mining plc
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Ormonde Drilling Indicates Major Tungsten Zone at Barruecopardo
Project, Spain
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DUBLIN & LONDON: 08 May 2008 - Ormonde Mining plc ("Ormonde" or the
"Company") reports that its drilling programme has now shown that a
substantial, wide, tungsten zone, containing several high grade
intervals, exists below the historic open-pit at its Barruecopardo
Tungsten Project in Salamanca, Spain.
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*��������� New drilling, targeted at investigating the mineralisation
below the historic open pit mine, indicates that the previously
mined Filon Principal Zone ("FP Zone") is a major tungsten zone
containing high grade mineralisation.
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*��������� This zone has the potential to add significant scale to
the Project's existing resource base. Ormonde's January 2008
resource estimate of 1 million tonnes at 0.7% WO3 was primarily
based on the adjacent Filon Maestro and Filon Central Zones.
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*��������� Drilling to-date has only tested the Filon Principal Zone
to a depth of 80 metres below the base of the open pit.� This zone
is at least 850m in length, open both to the north and to the south
and at depth, highlighting the potential for further expansion.
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*��������� The drilling results from the Filon Principal Zone include
those from BAR-35, which intersected true width intervals of 63
metres grading 0.25% WO3 including three high grade intervals of 2
metres grading 4.48% WO3, 1 metre grading 2.11% WO3 and 4 metres
grading 0.89% WO3. This hole demonstrates continuity of the broadly
similar tungsten intersections in BAR-26B, located 100m to the
south, as previously reported in April.
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*��������� A PDF version of this announcement which includes images
relating to today's announcement is available at
www.ormondemining.com/doc/press/pr080508.pdf.
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Kerr Anderson, Managing Director, said:
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"The recent drilling, by establishing Filon Principal as a major
tungsten zone, provides a considerable boost to our Barruecopardo
project, indicating the likelihood of adding scale to the Project's
existing resource base and economic potential.� We continue to have
high expectations that Ormonde will become a significant European
tungsten producer."
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The following table lists all of the available results from the FP
Zone under the open pit, showing the overall width and tungsten
grades over the full width of the FP Zone, and the higher grade zones
within it.� The drill holes are ordered from south to north.
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+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|� |Total Zone |High Grade Intervals |
|---------+------------------------------+------------------------------|
|Hole |From |Width |True |WO3% |From |Width |True |WO3% |
| |(m) |(m) |Width | |(m) |(m) |Width | |
| | | |(m) | | | |(m) | |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|*BAR-38 |98.0 |18.0 |12.5 |0.22 |98.0 |1.0 |0.7 |2.84 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|BAR-20 |127.0 |13.0 |9.5 |0.26 |137.0 |3.0 |2.2 |1.02 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|*BAR-35 |124.0 |82.0 |62.6 |0.25 |141.0 |5.0 |3.8 |0.89 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|� |� |� |� |� |160.0 |2.0 |1.5 |4.48 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|� |� |� |� |� |190.0 |1.0 |0.8 |2.11 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|BAR-26B |138.0 |67.0 |49.0 |0.30 |138.0 |7.0 |5.1 |1.10 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|� |� |� |� |� |185.0 |4.0 |2.9 |0.93 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|� |� |� |� |� |203.0 |2.0 |1.5 |1.87 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|*BAR-36 |117.0 |32.0 |20.9 |0.17 |124.9 |4.1 |� |0.55 |
|---------+-------+-------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|� |� |� |� |� |145.0 |4.0 |� |0.37 |
|---------+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+------|
|*BAR-37 |No significant results |� |� |� |� |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
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* New holes.
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The following holes drilled immediately north of the open pit show
the continuation of the FP Zone as a series of multiple, high-grade
zones:
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+-------------------------------------------------------+
| Hole | From (m) | Width(m) | True Width (m) | WO3% |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| BAR-02 | 53.0 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.68 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| � | 79.0 | 3.0 | 2.5 | 0.32 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| � | 110.0 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.57 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| BAR-27 | 28.0 | 4.0 | 3.3 | 0.40 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| � | 72.0 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 1.10 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| � | 80.0 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.53 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| *BAR-39 | 10.0 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 3.16 |
|---------+----------+----------+----------------+------|
| � | 50.0 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.71 |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
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* New holes
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In interpreting these results the following should be noted:
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*��������� The wide tungsten zone beneath the old abandoned open-pit
consists of a 10m to 63m true width mineralised zone, grading 0.17
to 0.30% WO3,� In the centre of the pit this zone contains three
high grade intervals varying from 1m to 5m in true width and
varying in grade from 0.89% to 4.48% WO3.
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*�Tungsten mineralisation in the FP Zone occurs in the form of
scheelite contained in a steeply dipping series of dense quartz
veins.
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*�The FP Zone will be included in the Company's updated resource
estimate, due by the end of Q2.
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*�Previous open pit mining was focused primarily on the FP Zone.
�Gravity processing of material derived from this zone is
therefore a proven technology, and the previous operation at
Barruecopardo is known to have produced a clean, high quality
scheelite concentrate.
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Results have also been received for one previously unreported infill
hole, BAR-30, drilled in the northern area of the Project. �BAR-30
intersected high grade tungsten mineralisation in the Filon Central
Zone:
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+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
|� |Total Zone |High Grade Intervals |
|--------+-----------------------------+-----------------------------|
|Hole |From |Width |True |WO3% |From |Width |True |WO3% |
| |(m) |(m) |Width | |(m) |(m) |Width | |
| | | |(m) | | | |(m) | |
|--------+------+-------+-------+------+------+-------+-------+------|
|BAR-30 |58.0 |9.0 |6.9 |0.38 |58.0 |1.0 |0.8 |2.36 |
|--------+------+-------+-------+------+------+-------+-------+------|
|� |� |� |� |� |66.0 |1.0 |0.8 |0.98 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
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All assays are reported using the ICP lithium metaborate fusion
method.� All values greater than 0.1% tungsten are subsequently
analysed by the XRF method.
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Kerr Anderson PhD EurGeol PGeo, Managing Director of Ormonde Mining
plc, and a qualified person as defined in the Guidance Note for
Mining, Oil and Gas Companies, March 2006, of the London Stock
Exchange, has reviewed and approved the technical information
contained in this announcement.
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A glossary explaining technical terms contained in this announcement
can be found at www.ormondemining.com/projects/glossary.html.
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Enquiries to:
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Ormonde Mining plc
Kerr Anderson, Managing Director�� Tel: +353 (0)46 9073623
Fraser Gardiner, Director�� Mob: +353 (0)86 3931178
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Bankside Consultants
Simon Rothschild / Louise Mason� Tel: +44 (0)20 7367 8888�� Mob: +44
(0)7703 167065
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Davy (Nomad / IEX Adviser)
Fergal Meegan� Tel: +353 (0)1 6796363
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Brewin Dolphin (UK Adviser)
Gordon Culfeather� Tel: +44 (0) 141 314 8121
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ENDS
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Further Information About Barruecopardo
The Company's January 2008 Inferred Resource estimate for
Barruecopardo was 1 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.7% WO3,
for 700,000 metric tonne units of contained WO3.� The deposit has
only been partly explored to a shallow depth and is open along
strike, and the Company estimated in January that the resource
potential down to 350m would be in the order of 3-4 million tonnes.
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In January Ormonde reported its Order-of-Magnitude Study which
indicated a start-up underground production rate of 200,000 tonnes
per year, which could result in tungsten production of 90,000 metric
tonne units of WO3 per year.� The production rate could be increased
post start-up if, as expected, the reserve base at the Project is
upgraded on further drilling.� The Study estimated total capital
costs to develop the Project in the region of �10-15 million, and net
surplus cashflows from the initial operation of �5 million per year.
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About Tungsten
Tungsten is most frequently used as tungsten monocarbide, which has a
hardness close to diamond, in cemented carbides.� The principal
tungsten applications include its use in cutting steels and in
tungsten alloys, electronics, and chemical products.
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Prices of tungsten concentrates are expected to remain buoyant for
the long term, and are currently quoted by the Metal Bulletin in the
range $160-$180 per metric tonne unit.� A metric tonne unit is equal
to 10kg of WO3, which equates to 1.0% contained WO3 in the rock.
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About Ormonde
Ormonde Mining plc is quoted on the AIM in London and the IEX in
Dublin.� Ormonde is a mineral development and exploration company
focused on Spain, with the objective of developing mining projects
and taking them into production.
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For more information please visit www.ormondemining.com.
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