Drilling Results

Alba Mineral Resources PLC
23 January 2006



              Alba Mineral Resources Plc ('Alba' or 'the Company')
                                Drilling Results


                  Arthrath Nickel-Copper-PGE Project, Scotland


Alba Mineral Resources plc is pleased to report results from the third hole of
its verification drilling programme on the Arthrath Nickel-Copper-PGE (platinum
group elements) project in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, where it has a 100 per cent
interest.


Highlights


  • extensive disseminated magmatic nickel-copper sulphide mineralization
    intersected in hole 05-AH/03, with 78.6 metres @ 0.20% Ni, 0.18% Cu, 0.016%
    Co from 184.4 metres, which includes higher grade intervals of:



O       7.4 metres @ 0.36% Ni, 0.18% Cu, 0.026% Co and 73 ppb Pd+Pt+Au

O       12.1 metres @ 0.28% Ni, 0.28% Cu, 0.024% Co and 67 ppb Pd+Pt+Au.


  • correlation with drill hole 05-AH/02 (previously reported) shows
    continuity and down-dip extension of mineralization intersected in hole
    05-AH/02; when also correlated with historical drill holes, indications are
    that the mineralized body may extend down-dip to at least 350 metres from
    surface and remains open at depth.



  • with drilling having confirmed down-dip continuity of a thick zone of
    mineralization at Arthrath, further drilling is planned following
    geophysical surveying to test for high grade nickel-copper zones within this
    large, under-explored system.





Alba's Chairman, Lance O'Neill, commented, 'These results are undoubtedly
encouraging. Drill hole 05-AH/03, and correlations with it, clearly demonstrate
a thick and apparently continuous mineralized body extending up to 350 metres
down plunge, which remains untested at depth. Alba will now focus on identifying
zones of massive sulphide at depth and lateral to the current drilling, within
this large and under-explored property over which Alba has an exclusive
interest. The Board believes that this project has now sufficiently progressed
to enable it to examine and evaluate the various options available to it to
pursue further detailed exploration of this project'



Diamond Drilling



Alba's programme of verification drilling has focussed on a zone where
widely-spaced drilling by previous operators indicated the presence of nickel
and copper mineralization approaching economic grade. A two hole programme was
designed to confirm both the grade and style of sulphide mineralization and to
test initial interpretations from historical data that a northerly dipping
mineralized body was present within a vertical or sub-vertical intrusive body.

Drill hole 05-AH/03 intersected 301.2 metres of variable, disseminated and net-
texture magmatic nickel-copper sulphide mineralization.  The main mineralized
interval has returned 78.6 metres @ 0.20% Ni, 0.18% Cu, 0.016% Co from 184.4
metres, and includes higher grade intervals in units with higher sulphide
content as follows:


From (m)       Width (m)     Nickel %      Copper %    Cobalt %     Pd+Pt+Au ppb
188.8           2.8           0.32          0.41         0.026            68

217.3          40.4           0.22          0.19         0.018            57
including       7.4           0.36          0.18         0.026            73
and            12.1           0.28          0.28         0.024            67



Drill hole 05-AH/03 shows continuity in mineralization styles over comparable
intervals and grades some 120 metres down-dip of those intersected in 05-AH/02
(109.7 metres @ 0.26% Ni, 0.29% Cu and 0.019% Co from 17.3 metres, including a
best interval of 7.8 metres @ 0.51% Ni, 0.54%Cu, 0.033% Co and 169 ppb
Pd+Pt+Au). In addition, drilling has confirmed that the mineralization in both
holes increases in intensity towards the unmineralized norite footwall
suggesting at least two pulses of magmatism.  The presence of more than one
magma pulse, in conjunction with certain sulphide and lithological textures seen
in Alba's drill core are features indicative of formation within a magma
conduit.  Current interpretations of data from nickel deposits at Voisey's Bay,
Canada and Jinchuan, China are indicative of similar conduit-type geological
settings.



Correlations between Alba holes 05-AH/02 and 05-AH/03 with historical drill
holes AD17 and AD20 demonstrates the potential for up to 350 metres of down dip
extension of the mineralization from surface, with further depth potential
currently untested.



Strong correlations exist between nickel, sulphur and iron, suggesting that most
of the nickel is present in sulphide, and indicating that any massive sulphides
present in the system could contain grades of around 2.5-3.0% nickel.  Further
drilling will be directed towards the discovery of semi-massive to massive
sulphide zones within this large system.



Other Activities



Completion of extensive soil geochemical and geophysical surveys is expected
during January. These programmes have been ongoing during the second half of
2005 and data will be used to aid in the definition of the size of the
mineralized intrusive system and identify new drilling targets.  Results of this
work will be reported when an assessment of the data has been completed.



Background



Work at the Arthrath property has targeted the strike length of a 10 kilometre
long east-west trending mafic intrusion, which is up to 600 metres wide. Between
1968 and 1973 previous operators drilled 36 drill holes and encountered nickel
and copper bearing sulphide mineralization over a 4.5 kilometre strike length.
This known mineralized area is geographically central to the area being explored
by Alba.  Previous drilling was widely spaced and did not, in Alba's opinion,
adequately test the potential for high-grade massive sulphide bodies.
Importantly, there was no systematic analysis for cobalt or PGEs of previous
operator drill core.





Enquiries:-


Lance O'Neill, Chairman, Alba Mineral Resources Plc               020 7499 8334
Wilson Robb, Exploration Director, Alba Mineral Resources Plc    [phone]
Liam Murray, City Financial Associates Limited                    020 7090 7800



For more information, please visit www.albamineralresources.com.


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