Ferret's Stock to Watch: BONAPARTE DIAMOND MINES NL09:33,...

Ferret's Stock to Watch: BONAPARTE DIAMOND MINES NL
09:33, Tuesday, 24 October 2006

A UNIQUE DIAMOND EXPLORER THAT OPERATES ON THE SEA FLOOR

Sydney - Tuesday - October 24: (RWE Aust Business News)
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OVERVIEW
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Bonaparte Diamond Mines NL (ASX:BON) is the only company in
Australia that conducts marine diamond exploration and is one of only a
few companies internationally that owns a marine diamond sampling
system.

Its unique operations have made further diamond recoveries and
positive results from the resource development sampling underway in the
Luderitz ML111 Project area, offshore Namibia.

Through its Joint Operations (JO) agreement with Diamond Fields
International Ltd, Bonaparte has exclusive access to two designated
resource development areas Diaz Point 1 (DP1) and Diaz Point 2 (DP2),
covering a total of 1.6 million square metres within ML111.

Processing of the second batch of samples recovered between
September 25 to October 11 from DP1 was completed at the secure onshore
facility in Luderitz.

Since the start of operations on September 21, a total of 369
samples have been completed in DP1 and diamond recoveries have increased
to a total of 189 stones with a total weight of 79.56 carats (ct).

The recent sampling includes the recovery of a 4.16ct diamond
recovered from a sample taken with the Bonaparte sampler (BoSS).

This diamond (initially estimated by geologists onboard the
vessel to be approximately 3.0ct), is the largest stone recovered during
the current sampling operations.

Prior to this result, the largest stone recovered was a 1.94ct
stone valued at $US787/ct. The proportion of diamonds 0.4ct or greater in
size remains high at 71 stones (38 per cent) and this includes nine
diamonds greater than one carat. The quality of the stones recovered to
date also remains typical of Namibian marine diamonds where historically
more than 95 per cent of diamonds are of gem quality.

The number of positive samples (samples containing one or more
diamonds) and multiple diamond recoveries (one stone/sample) remains
high.

The grid-based sampling has so far identified six discrete areas
of near-continuous mineralisation over a total area of approximately
255,000 square metres in DP1 (incorporating the 30,000 square metres
identified from the first sampling results).

DP1 has a total area of 1.2 million square metres and sampling in
the area remains in progress.

Bonaparte's managing director Mike Woodborne said: "The sampling
continues to deliver diamonds of excellent size and quality and the
results indicate real potential for the delineation of substantial
resource areas for mining development in the JO area, in line with our
objective to establish early cashflow."

SHARE PRICE MOVEMENTS
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Shares of Bonaparte Diamonds yesterday traded steady at 13.5c.
Rolling high for the year was 20.5c and low 3.6c. The company has 84.8
million shares on issue with a meagre market cap of $11.4 million.

Bonaparte Diamond Mines reported the discovery of the first
diamonds on October 3.

Through its joint operations agreement with Diamond Fields
International Ltd, Bonaparte has exclusive access to two designated
resource development areas covering a total of 1,600,000m2 within ML111.

During the first four days of sampling operations up to
September 25, diamonds were recovered from 61 per cent (31 samples) of
the 51 samples completed producing a total of 57 stones weighing 23.78ct.

Multiple diamond recoveries (one stone) have been returned from
15 samples. A high proportion (39 per cent) of the diamonds are 0.4ct or
greater in size with the largest diamond being a 1.94ct stone.

To date, grid-based sampling has focused on a well-defined
geological feature in the central part of the Diaz Point 1 (DP1) area
where the results indicate near-continuous mineralisation in an area of
approximately 30,000 square metres.

"The initial sampling results are very encouraging, proving both
the effectiveness of Bonaparte's BoSS sampling technology and the
potential for delineation of a mineable resource in the Joint Operations
area," Mr Woodborne said.

A 1.94 carat diamond recovered with the BoSS seabed sampler is
being used simultaneously with the De Beers sampler from the MV Douglas
Bay, to provide paired samples of about 2.2 square metres in size on grid
spacing of 40m x 50m in identified mineralised areas.

BACKGROUND
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Bonaparte Diamond Mines NL joined the Australian Stock Exchange
list in October 2004.

The company is a focused diamond company that maintains a
portfolio of highly prospective land and marine projects located in the
established diamond producing provinces in southern Africa and Australia.

The marine projects range from "grassroots" to advanced, where
diamonds have been identified by previous work.

The company continues to assess any further opportunities to
secure marine or onshore diamond projects that are at an advanced stage
of development in Namibia.

Bonaparte is well placed to be a competitive and effective
player in the expanding marine diamond industry off Namibia.

The Namib Project is located offshore in the vicinity of
Hollamsbird Island, 250km north of the port of Luderitz.

Active marine diamond mining operations occur off Luderitz and
extend some 100km further north of Hottentot Bay.

The Namib Project comprises Exclusive Prospecting Licence (EPL)
EPL3241 (Tsauchab Licence), and EPL3323 (Meob Licence) which are not
contiguous but lie in close proximity.

More recently the project area has been expanded by the
inclusion of an EPL application, EPL3533 (Tsauchab East Licence) which
lies adjacent and inshore of the Tsauchab Licence.

In Australia, one of the key operations is the Nabberu Project.

Bonaparte holds a 100 per cent interest in two tenements
(E52/1468 and E69/2117) incorporating four proven diamondiferous
kimberlite intrusions that occur within the Nabberu Kimberlite Field in
the Murchison region of Western Australia.

Of the four known diamondiferous kimberlites within the
tenements, the largest is the Nabberu 01 kimberlite pipe at approximately
0.5 hectares in size.

They and six other kimberlites as well as numerous related
lamprophyric rocks and geophysical anomalies were discovered in the
Project tenements in 1991/92 during an extensive exploration programme
conducted by Stockdale Prospecting (a subsidiary of DeBeers).

The first phase marine prospecting program in the Ord Prospect
was completed in August 2005.

The program was a technical success and also produced
significant quantities of fluvial gravel from the northern part of the
Lacrosse Scour Basin (LSB) proving the geological model for the area and
the prospecting target selection.

The Seppelt Range Project area is located some 200km northwest
of Kununurra. The Project comprises Exploration Licence Applications
80/3365 and 80/3366 which are strategically situated on possible
extensions of the diamondiferous Seppelt Kimberlite Zone.

The Zone is currently under trial mine development by its owner
and contains the Seppelt 1, 2 and 5 kimberlite pipes.

Bonaparte aims to seek repetitions of such features in its own
areas and also aims to seek structurally controlled locations where there
may be better preservation of the intrusive pipes. The collective area of
the applications is approximately 175 square kilometres.

The Carlton Project area is situated 75km north of Kununurra in
Western Australia.

It comprises Exploration Licence 80/2583 which has an area of
approximately 150 square kilometres.

Bonaparte will seek primary deposits hosted by kimberlite or
lamproite intrusions.

Directors consider there is good potential for diamond
exploration based on the regional tectonic setting of the area and the
discovery of kimberlitic indicator minerals including pyrope garnets,
mirco diamonds and magnesian ilmenite.

In addition, the The Cypher Creek Project area is situated on the
northern Kimberley coast.

It comprises Exploration Licence 80/2823 which covers an area of
approximately 233 square kilometres.

Bonaparte holds or is entitled to a 100 per cent interest in the
tenement subject to a gross royalty of 2 per cent to De Beers Australia
Exploration Ltd on any gold or base metals production.

ENDS

Copyright © 2006 RWE Australian Business News. All rights reserved.