gold

Initial Results from Costean Programme
12-05 1624


The Company completed 16 backhoe costeans across the interpreted
surface locations of the East, West and C lodes of the Augusta gold
and antimony deposit in central Victoria in April.

The costeaning was undertaken to provide additional data for the
final feasibility study into the development of Augusta deposit and,
combined with the 5100m of diamond drilling on the reef system, will
assist in establishing the final mining reserves for the project.

The costeans were dug to a depth of 4m. Grab samples were taken from
the backhoe bucket and, while occasionally solid lode material was
located, the samples were commonly contaminated with lower grade
material. The program confirmed that the lodes were from 30cm to
50cm wide and extend close to the surface.

At the projected surface position of East lode, five costeans were
excavated and several located massive quartz antimony lodes at 3m to
4m. Initial gold results show values of up to 98.1 g/t gold with
another seven samples returning over one ounce of gold per tonne in
separate costeans. Lodes were estimated at 20cm to 70cm wide and
visual inspection of the samples indicated that high antimony grades
could also be expected from many of these samples. Antimony assay
results are awaited.

At the projected surface position of West Lode, five costeans were
excavated over a strike distance of 80m. Lode widths ranged from 30cm
to 50cm. The best result returned 1.2g/t gold.

On C Lode six costeans were excavated over a strike distance of 80m.
Gold values of up to 96g/t were recovered and the results showed a
strong continuity of the lode position.

In addition to the surface trenching, a series of reverse circulation
holes has been drilled to obtain maximum samples of the lodes for
metallurgical testing. Samples from this programme have been sent for
assay.

COSTEAN GRAB SAMPLING RESULTS
SIGNIFICANT RESULTS > 1 g/t Au)

LODE COSTEAN NUMBER RESULTS

C 2 12.7 g/t Au
C 3 96.0 g/t Au
C 4 1.0 g/t Au
C 5 69.3 g/t Au

West 11 1.2 g/t Au

East 12 53.8 g/t Au
13 90.0 g/t Au
13 69.5 g/t Au
14 10.0 g/t Au
14 13.3 g/t Au
14 43.6 g/t Au
14 25.1 g/t Au
14 75.1 g/t Au
14 35.6 g/t Au
15 1.7 g/t Au
15 60.7 g/t Au
16 98.1 g/t Au

J Debrodt
COMPANY SECRETARY

Footnote: Geological information in this report is based on data
provide by Graeme Weber, the company's geological consultant who is a
Corporate Member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and
Metallurgy, and is a "Competent Person, as detailed in the September
1999 edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Minerals
Resources and Ore Reserves (The JORC Code). The resource estimate
published in this has been carried out by Mr Weber in compliance with
JORC Code.

ends - AAP