Salamance Update

Ormonde Mining PLC
31 January 2005


                               Ormonde Mining plc

  Ormonde Completes Acquisition of Advanced Gold Project in Salamanca, Western
                                     Spain


DUBLIN & LONDON: 31 January 2005 - Ormonde Mining plc ("Ormonde" or "the
Company") reports that it has acquired several advanced gold properties in the
Salamanca area of western Spain. These include deposits where sampling by
previous workers has demonstrated potential for high-grade zones within large
lower grade gold resources, and several high-grade gold prospects where there
has been no or only limited follow-up exploration.

Ormonde and joint venture partner Prehenita S.L. ("Prehenita") have been awarded
three permit areas following a public tender process, and have secured two
further contiguous permits in joint venture with SIEMCALSA. Together with
permits announced on 1st November 2004, these ground holdings are termed the
Salamanca Gold Project ("the Project"), with a total permitted area of 720
square kilometres. Ormonde can earn a 90 per cent interest in the Project by
staged funding of exploration totalling €2.2 million over a five year period.



PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

(Note: resource estimates are taken from Geological Survey and previous company
reports)

  • Mina Marta Gold Deposit: previous sampling has shown potential for
    near-surface high-grade gold zones (over 8 grams per tonne) within the
    deposit, where some 1.0 million ounces of gold at an average grade of 1.1
    grams per tonne ("g/t") have been reported.

  • Mina Saturno and Valle de los Espinos Deposits: collective resources of
    310,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 2.2 g/t; a highly prospective
    structure linking these two deposits has not been explored for gold.

  • Pino de Oro Gold Prospect: advanced exploration targets with high gold
    grades at shallow depths in historical drilling as described in the
    Company's announcement on 1st November, 2004 (1.0 metre grading 65.8 g/t
    gold, 6.0 metres grading 5.9 g/t gold).

  • Sampling results highlight several high-grade gold prospects, with average
    grades from rock samples at each prospect ranging from 4.1 to 92.0 g/t gold
    (see table below), in areas where there has been no or only limited
    follow-up exploration.

  • Large exploration permits covering areas considered to be prospective
    based on favourable geology and regional geochemistry data.


Managing Director of Ormonde, Kerr Anderson commented,

"We have secured an extensive ground holding in one of the most pronounced gold
terrains of Spain. Ormonde is the first company to hold comprehensive tenure
over the region's gold deposits and many prospects, a tribute to the strength of
the Company's Spanish management. Resource potential has already been
demonstrated at Mina Marta and Mina Saturno - Valle de los Espinos, and the
evaluation of these deposits will be the focus of our immediate work programmes.
We also believe that as much of the region remains under-explored, our excellent
ground position gives us a distinct advantage for making new discoveries."



MINA MARTA GOLD DEPOSIT

Mina Marta occurs as a large quartz vein swarm within metasedimentary and
granitic rocks, over an area of 1,300 x 100 metres. Some 1.0 million ounces of
gold at an average grade of 1.1 g/t have been reported for the deposit from
surface to 150 metres depth. As this is based on relatively limited trenching
and drilling, the Company intends to carry out a significant amount of further
drilling to delineate the higher grade parts of the deposit.

These high-grade zones are evidenced by previous surface sampling of quartz
veins, which returned high-grade gold values (see table below). The average
grade of 175 samples taken from outcrops and small dumps at Mina Marta is 8.1 g/
t gold, with a maximum value of 201 g/t gold. Significantly, this highest grade
sample was taken from the metasedimentary host rocks, suggesting that
mineralization also occurs in broader zones around the quartz veins.


MINA SATURNO and VALLE DE LOS ESPINOS GOLD DEPOSITS

Total resources of 310,000 ounces of gold have been estimated at Mina Saturno
and Valle de los Espinos by the local Geological Survey, based on drilling,
trenching and bulk sampling. Gold mineralization occurs in quartz veins which
were previously exploited for tungsten by open-pit mining. As previous operators
focused on tungsten mineralization, there has been no significant gold
exploration along a highly prospective, 3 kilometre-long structure linking these
two deposits.


OTHER PROSPECTS

A summary of gold grades of rock samples (principally quartz veining) taken by
previous workers from the main deposits and other prospects within the Salamanca
Gold Project are tabulated as follows:
                                                                              
 Locality            No. Samples    Max Grade    Av. Grade    > 3 g/t   > 10 g/t     

 Mina Marta          175            200.9        8.1          30%       12%     
 Mina Saturno        29             22.0         2.25         17%       3%      
 V. de los Espinos   28             41.0         4.3          32%       11%     
 Prospect            7              211.9        92.0         86%       71%     
 Prospect            30             58.6         9.1          30%       23%     
 Prospect            21             19.6         4.1          29%       19%     
 Prospect            13             31.9         12.6         77%       62%     
 Prospect            5              25.3         14.6         80%       60%     
 Prospect            5              12.6         5.0          60%       20%     
 Prospect            5              24.8         13.4         80%       40%  


EXPLORATION STRATEGY

The Mina Marta and Mina Saturno - Valle de los Espinos Deposits, where resource
potential has already been demonstrated, will be prioritised as targets.
Existing drilling and geological data for these localities are currently being
compiled prior to modelling and validation of published work. Drilling will
subsequently be carried out, initially designed to verify and test the
continuity of existing drill intersections.

Ongoing work in other areas, to include interpretation of satellite imagery,
prospecting, rock sampling and soil sampling, will aim to identify new zones to
be developed into drilling targets. Many characteristics of the mineralization
in the Project area are typical of intrusion-related gold systems, and
exploration strategies for Salamanca will be similar to those being successfully
applied at the Company's Tracia Gold Project, also interpreted to be
intrusion-related.


BROCHURE OF PARTICULARS

Application has been made to the Irish Stock Exchange for 750,000 New Ordinary
Shares of nominal value €0.025 each in the Company, to be admitted to dealing on
the Exploration Securities Market of the Irish Stock Exchange and it is expected
that dealings will commence therein on 4 February, 2005. The shares have been
allotted pursuant to an agreement with Prehenita S.L. on the Salamanca Gold
Project and will rank pari passu in all respects with the existing issued
Ordinary Shares in the Company.


Enquiries to:

 Kerr Anderson, Managing Director,
 Ormonde Mining plc
 Tel: [phone]

 Fraser Gardiner, Investor and Media Relations,
 Ormonde Mining plc
 Mobile: [phone]

 Simon Rothschild, Bankside Consultants
 Tel: [phone] Mobile: [phone]


BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Ormonde Mining is listed on the Irish Stock Exchange and also trades on London's
SEAQ platform. The Company is focused on acquiring and developing high-grade
gold projects in Spain. Ormonde's portfolio contains advanced projects with
substantial gold (and copper) resources, including La Zarza with one million
ounces of gold, and other properties where the Company anticipates that drilling
will identify significant new resources. The Company has a strong local Spanish
management team, supported by a Board with extensive exploration expertise in
the region and mine development experience.


For more information, please visit www.ormondemining.com or contact the Company
at [e-mail].

31 January 2005



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