GREAT AUSTRALIANRESOURCES LTDAASX RELEASE15th February...

GREAT AUSTRALIAN
RESOURCES LTD
A
ASX RELEASE
15th February 2006
Company Announcements Office
Australian Stock Exchange Ltd
Level 4
Bridge St
SYDNEY NSW 2000
CAMBODIA GOLD PROJECTS – 100% ACQUISITION
Great Australian Resources Ltd (GAU) is pleased to announce that the Company has exercised its option agreement to acquire 100% of Liberty Mining International Pty Ltd (LMI). LMI has 100% interests in two gold projects within the Kingdom of Cambodia.
Under the terms of the agreement, GAU will acquire LMI in consideration for 6,000,000 GAU shares. LMI has two gold concessions, Bang Lung and Oyadao/Amdong Meas (meaning valley of gold), in the Ratanakiri Province. The two areas total 540km2 and are located approximately 400km northeast of the capital, Phnom Penh.
GAU recently commissioned an independent geological consulting group, Bourke & Associates, to carry out due diligence studies on the LMI projects. Subsequently GAU has received a very positive review and recommendation from the independent geologist’s report.
The report suggests that the project areas have sufficient information and encouragement from work done to date for GAU to build a solid foundation and to commence a concerted exploration effort in Cambodia. On the basis of field studies, the report indicates that significant potential exists for the project areas to host economic mineralisation comparable to those being mined in the neighbouring countries of Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.
Similar styles of mineralisation that have recently been discovered in nearby developing countries include:
1. Oxiana’s Sepon Project (3.5Moz gold and 1.25Mt copper) located in Laos commenced in 2003,
2. Kinsgate’s Chatree Project (3.2Moz gold and 26Moz silver) in Thailand opened in 2001, and
3. Pan Australia’s Phu Bia Project (1.3Moz gold and 0.6Mt copper) in Laos commenced in 2005.
GREAT AUSTRALIAN
RESOURCES LTD
CN 106 874 917
www.greataustralian.com.au
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In South East Asia, a long history of artisinal alluvial and hard rock mining has often preceded the discovery of large epithermal gold deposits. The presence of widespread mining by local people on the two project areas is a good indicator that the ground is fertile and highly prospective.
Visits to the project areas and meetings with senior staff at the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy in Phnom Penh have been completed as part of the Company’s due diligence process.
Cambodia is emerging from a long period of oppression and political instability. Since UN sanctioned elections in 1993 and the final surrender of the Khmer Rouge in 1999, the nation has slowly begun to develop its foreign trade and business environment. This has recently been accelerated by the current government, encouraging foreign companies to help develop the mineral resources of Cambodia through its Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy.
GAU also carried out its own field due diligence on the two project areas. Results to date from the Company’s rock chip sampling have been very encouraging with best assay results of 88g/t gold and 68g/t gold respectively from the two project areas associated with anomalous copper-lead-zinc values. Other rock chip results include 46g/t gold with 0.2% copper, 0.14% lead and 1.31% zinc.
There has been little modern exploration carried out in the country and the opportunity for significant discoveries is supported by these early reconnaissance results. GAU's work to date indicates strong potential for the discovery of large epithermal or mesothermal style deposits in the project areas. The Company is preparing to start exploration programmes in March 2006.
Joe Cornelius BSc, MAustIMM, MAIG, SIA
Managing Director
The information in this report that relates to Exploration Results, Mineral Resources or Ore Reserves of the projects owned by Great Australian Resources Ltd is based on information compiled by Mr Joe Cornelius and Mr Don Horn, who are members of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (and Mr Bryan Bourke who is a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists) and have sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as Competent Persons as defined in the 2004 Edition of the ‘Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves’. Mr. Cornelius and Mr. Horn consent to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
For further information please contact:
Great Australian Resources Limited Telephone: +61 8 9479 5745
13/28 Belmont Avenue Facsimile: +61 8 9479 6362
Belmont WA 6104 Website: www.greataustralian.com.au
Email: [email protected]