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Pacific Bay Opens Office in Namibia, Seeks Uranium Opportunities
For Immediate Release. Vancouver, British Columbia & Windhoek, Namibia, Africa. July 20, 2009. Mr. David H. Brett, President and CEO, Pacific Bay Minerals Ltd. (TSX Venture: PBM, the "Company" or "Pacific Bay") reports that the Company has opened an office in Windhoek, Namibia to support its goal of exploring for uranium in the country. Pacific Bay has established a Namibian subsidiary named PBM Explorations (Namibia)(Pty) Ltd, retained a country manager, investigated several uranium opportunities, conducted site visits and engaged in discussions with a number of parties on possible acquisitions.
During the 2nd quarter of 2009, a Company delegation traveled to Namibia, including CEO David Brett and Senior Uranium Consultant, Dr. Bernard Free, to visit a number of identified uranium opportunities. Two of Pacific Bay's staff, natives of Namibia, joined the delegation to assist in property identification, establish a subsidiary and set up financial operations.
To assist with ongoing negotiations, government relations and general business affairs, the Company has retained Mr. Peter Mietzner, a well-known and respected business person in the country. Based in Wnindhoek, Namibia's capital city, Mr. Mietzner has been empowered to represent the Company and sign documents where necessary. Mr. Mietzner's appointment adds tremendously to the Company's management team in the Country.
"Namibia has been a uranium powerhouse for decades, but recent world-class discoveries have made Namibia the premier destination worldwide for uranium explorers," said Pacific Bay CEO David Brett. "Namibia is an impressive country with excellent infrastructure, vast exploration potential, and a positive regulatory regime dedicated to sustainable mining development. Pacific Bay has committed the resources needed to be a serious long-term part of the mining community in Namibia. We acknowledge the need for mineral development in Namibia to incorporate the interests of previously disadvantaged groups and have had discussions with a number of Black Empowerment Enterprises."
Mr Peter Mietzner added that the Namibian Minister of Mines and Energy,Mr. Erkki Nghimtina, had also been informed of the latest developments and had expressed his delight with the establishment of a Namibian subsidiary.
Mietzner further stated: "With the backing of a reputable company like Pacific Bay behind us, we feel this is an opportunity for claim holders in Namibia to enter into a truly pro-active partnership which will be to the benefit of all and add valuable employment opportunities."
He further said that Namibian and regional claim holders with nuclear and gold potential are welcome to contact him in Windhoek at P O Box 98 215, or by phone +264 81 124 00 24 for further information.
After a period at Namibia's first Uranium mine, Rössing, Mr. Mietzner joined the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation. Working in Television, his duties included Presidential Reporter and Economics Editor and host of a weekly political/economic show called "Talk of the Nation." Peter is widely acknowledged as a leading expert on Namibian business, financial, political and budgetary issues. Following his tenure with NBC, Peter launched his own Public Relations Consultancy that worked with leading Namibian business concerns such as the Electoral Commission in 1999 and Namibian tycoon, Mr. Aaron Mushimba. Peter was also CEO of The Southern Times,he regions only Sunday Newspaper.
Namibia Uranium Background
Namibia's uranium production, resources and potential are substantial. The Rössing Uranium Mine, the country's oldest mine and the world's third largest uranium mine, produced 4,004 tonnes of uranium oxide (U3O8) in 2008 and has an expected mine life to 2021. Paladin Energy's Langer Heinrich mine has recently completed an expansion programme that will push production to 3.7-million pounds a year. Increased production at both Rössing Uranium and Langer Heinrich combined will push production of uranium oxide over 5,000 tonnes in 2008 and catapult Namibia into 4th place in world ranking.
Areva's Trekkopje project will be the country's third uranium producing mine, after Rössing, at 8.5 million pounds a year. Bannerman's Etango Project hosts an indicated resource of 195.5mt @207ppm 89.2million lbs of metal(U3O8) and an additional inferred resource of 87mt@195ppm (37.4million lbs of U3O8). Extract Resource's, Rössing South Zone 1 deposit, now sits at 145 million pounds of uranium oxide (U3O8) at and overall grade of 449 parts per million (ppm) U3O8. Forsys Metals' Valencia Deposit hosts a measured and indicated resource of 189.2mt grading 152ppm and containing 64 million lbs of U3O8.
Pacific Bay's Senior Geological Consultant Dr. Free stated, "Namibia is endowed with numerous granitic complexes that have potential for substantial uranium mineralization and further significant discoveries are likely. Highly under-explored, with good infrastructure in place, a mining friendly jurisdiction, very favourable geologic disposition, Namibia has taken its place as one of the four greatest uranium countries in the world.
Dr. Free further commented, "Geologically, the deposits of Rössing, Extract and Forsys all have a common signature and are located along the "Rössing Trend." The mineralization is hosted by Alaskites, a felsic, coarse grained granitic suite or rocks which have been intruded in the Proterozoic Damara System --- a highly metamorphic rock suite. The Damara orogenic belt, which is the hosting system, measures approx. 80 km across and stretches from the Atlantic coast, roughly centered on the town of Swakopmund, in a north-easterly direction for an undetermined length.Only about 120 km have been explored. Outside the Rössing Alaskite belt a number of world-class Calcrete type uranium deposits exist. With its semi-arid to arid climate and broad drainage systems to the Atlantic, the young, Tertiary to Quaternary troughs are filled with sedimentarypaleo-surface calcrete formations which host secondary uranium mineralization ---chemically stable under oxidizing conditions. The Langer Heinrich deposit falls into this category and is geographically located within the Damara Belt."
Pacific Bay Minerals Ltd.
Per,
David H. Brett
President & CEO
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