Nkombwa Hill Rare Earths and Phosphate Project,...

African Consolidated Resources plc / Ticker: AFCR / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining
11 June 2010
          African Consolidated Resources plc ('ACR' or 'the Company')
             Nkombwa Hill Rare Earths and Phosphate Project, Zambia

ACR,  the AIM  listed resource  development company,  is pleased  to provide the
following  update in  respect of  its recently  acquired Nkombwa Hill project in
Zambia  (the 'Project') including  the signing of  a joint venture agreement for
the  exploration of the Project for rare  earth minerals and the commencement of
an in-house work programme with the aim of defining a phosphate resource.

The  Nkombwa  Hill  project  lies  in  North  Eastern  Zambia,  23km east of the
Lusaka-Tanzania  bitumen highway near the town  of Isoka, within ACR's 720 sq km
Large  Scale Prospecting Licence No 12198-HQ-LPL which was granted on 16 January
2010.  This  licence  covers  Proterozoic  metasediments  and basement gneisses,
intruded  by the Nkombwa Hill carbonatite and at least six of the Isoka swarm of
kimberlite  pipes,  explored  by  De  Beers  in  1959-1973.  The Carbonatite has
historically been explored for phosphate, rare earths, and niobium.

The  Project  complements  ACR's  Chishanya  Hill phosphate project in Zimbabwe,
where  considerable  expertise  has  already  been  developed, investigating the
geology  and metallurgy  of a  similar carbonatite  intrusion.  ACR believes the
demand  in  southern  Africa  for  phosphate  fertilisers  for  food and biofuel
production will create strong markets for rock phosphate concentrates.

RARE EARTH MINERALS JOINT VENTURE AGREEMENT

ACR is pleased to announce that it has signed a joint venture heads of agreement
('Joint  Venture Agreement') with  Australian-based private exploration company,
Rare  Earth International Ltd  ('REI'), to explore  the Project specifically for
Rare Earth minerals.

The Joint Venture Agreement will enable REI, in conjunction with ACR, to explore
for  rare earth minerals, drawing upon  the specialist exploration skills of the
REI  management.  REI CEO Dr. Jock Harmer and consultant Dr. Paul Nex, both have
world  class academic and commercial experience in carbonatite hosted rare earth
Nkombwa mineralisation.

Pursuant  to the Joint Venture  Agreement, REI has been  granted a period of 90
days  in which to complete its due diligence  of the Project after which it will
then  have a  binding, exclusive  right to  explore the  Project for  Rare Earth
minerals.  In Stage 1 of the agreement REI must spend a minimum of $750,000 over
two  years  to  define  an  initial  Inferred  Resource  (to the Australian JORC
standard)  at which point  they will earn  30% equity in the  Project. A further
Stage  2 expenditure  of  $600,000  over  18 months  and  the  definition  of an
Indicated  JORC Resource will  increase REI's equity  interest in the Project to
50%.

Upon  receipt of a Phase 2 Completion Notice,  ACR may elect to co-fund Phase 3
(completion  of pre-feasibility) and Phase  4 (bankable feasibility) with REI so
that  each party maintains a 50% interest in the Project.  If ACR does not elect
to  co-fund after Phase 2 then after Stage  3 and Stage 4, REI will earn 65% and
75% respectively if they continue with sole funding.

PHOSPHATE AND NIOBIUM POTENTIAL

ACR retains 100% rights for minerals other than Rare Earths at Nkombwa Hill. The
potential  phosphate  resource  at  Nkombwa  adds  a  second  important asset in
addition  to ACR's  Chishanya Hill  phosphate deposit  in Zimbabwe, where ACR is
seeking to define a maiden JORC resource before the end of 2010.

Previous  explorers  for  phosphate  including  Chartered  Exploration Ltd, Roan
Selection  Trust  Ltd,  Mindeco  Ltd,  Zimco  Ltd  and  the Food and Agriculture
Organisation  (FAO) have variously estimated Non-JORC/NI43-101/SAMREC 'reserves'
of  the Nkombwa phosphate-bearing  rocks at more  than 200 million tonnes with a
grade of 4.6% P(2)O(5), however the depth extent and calculation methods of this
estimate is not known (Van Straten P. H. 2002.  Rocks for Crops).

Much of the phosphate is contained in a rare mineral Isokite, a Ca-Mg Phosphate,
which  in past  metallurgical studies  (to 1991) was  not easy to concentrate by
conventional  flotation processes due to the Magnesium content. Modern flotation
chemistry  however may be able to solve the processing difficulties and ACR will
investigate this opportunity.

Niobium  occurs widely disseminated in the  carbonate as the mineral pyrochlore,
(NaCa)(2)Nb(2)O(6),  at a "fairly constant" grade of 0.16% Nb(2)0(5 ) (Chartered
Exploration  Ltd 1953-63), with individual  samples reported over 1% Nb(2)0(5).
It  may be possible to  float off the pyrochlore  as a by-product in a phosphate
flotation circuit.

Proposed Work Programme

Data compilation of a large volume of historical reports is nearly complete, and
field  visits  are  scheduled  for  June-July,  ahead  of  extensive mapping and
geochemical  sampling programmes. Drilling  and metallurgical-extraction studies
will   be  required  to  assess  the  resources  at  depth  once  technical  and
environmental planning is completed.


FURTHER INFORMATION

Rare Earth Mineralisation at Nkombwa Hill

Rare  Earth elements (REEs)  comprise the family  of Lanthanides on the periodic
table  of elements, and  are separated into  light rare earths  - Lanthanum La),
Cerium (Ce), Praseodymium (Pr), Neodymium (Nd), and Samarium (Sm) - and the less
common heavy rare earths such as Yttrium, Europium, Terbium and Gadolinium.

The  major REE-bearing minerals at  Nkombwa Hill belong to  the light REE group,
and  are  bastnäsite,  monazite  and  pyrochlore  with minor daqingshanite-(Ce),
rare-earth bearing isokite, strontian apatite, strontianite and other rare earth
carbonates.  REE's reported from the carbonatite  by Roan Selection Trust, Leeds
University  and others  include Cerium,  Lanthanum, Neodymium,  Praseodymium and
Gadolinium.

Within  the carbonatite complex, bastnäsite - (Ce,La)CO(3)F, has been identified
as  an abundant mineral in xenoliths hosted by late-stage ferrocarbonatite sills
and  dykes (Touret,  Leeds University,  1991). Bastnäsite-(Ce) occurs as fibrous
yellow  crystals, about 1 µm in size, replacing monazite and in association with
baryte,  in  a  matrix  of  dolomite.  In common with bastnäsite-(Ce) from other
locations,  the  bastnäsite-(Ce)  of  Nkombwa  Hill  contains  up  to  70% light
rare-earth oxides. However, Nkombwa Hill bastnäsite-(Ce) is relatively deficient
in La and enriched in Pr and Nd.

Cerium  oxide assay results ranging from 0.78 to 9.28% CeO(2) were recorded from
five  samples of drill  core obtained by  Roan Selection Trust  Ltd in 1968-69.
Individual rock chip samples from various workers in the 1980's yielded 2.5% Ce,
3.3% La and 0.6% Nd; 7.1% Ce, 7.2% La and 1.1% Nd and 5.6% Ce, 5.5% La and 2.3%
Nd.

REE uses and markets

Light  rare earth elements are essential  components of fuel refinery catalysts,
catalytic  converters, fuel cell alloys,  batteries, high quality optical glass,
fluorescent lights and TV screens, and high strength alloys for aircraft engines
and   lighter   cars.   Neodymium  and  Samarium  permanent  magnets  have  wide
applications  in the aerospace  industry, cellphones, CD's,  computers and sound
systems  where miniaturization  of components  is a  key feature. Emerging green
technologies  such as wind turbines, hybrid  vehicles and fuel cells all require
rare earth magnets, catalysts and specialized REE alloys.

China  controls approximately 97% of  the world's rare  earth element market and
57% of  current known  Reserves. A  March 2010 report  by the  Institute for the
Analysis  of Global Security  (a Washington based  think-tank), predicts Chinese
domestic  demand will absorb almost 100% of  China's REE production by 2012, and
increasing  government  control  and  restrictive  export  quotas are already in
place.  The study predicts  global demand to  reach 200,000 tonnes of rare earth
elements  a year in 2014, up from  about 150,000t in 2010, leading to a 40,000t
annual  shortfall by  2015. Current world  production is  dominated by the giant
Bayan  Obo mine in Inner Mongolia and will remain so even after production ramps
up  from Mountain Pass (California), Mt  Weld (Australia), Thor Lake and  Hoidas
Lake (Canada) and Steenkampskraal in South Africa, between 2010 and 2013.

By  2014 the two largest and most advanced projects outside China, Mountain Pass
and  Mt  Weld,  will  each  only  be  contributing  about  20,000t or 10% of the
estimated  demand.  Mt Weld  owner Lynas Corp.  Ltd estimates 2010 supply of La,
Ce,  Pr  and  Nd  is  already  falling  behind  demand by 27%, 15%, 29% and 10%
respectively.

                                    **ENDS**

For  further information visit www.acrplc.com <

http://www.acrplc.com/> or please
contact:

Andrew Cranswick                   African     Consolidated [phone]
                                   Resources plc

Roy Tucker                         African     Consolidated [phone]
                                   Resources plc            [phone]


Richard Greenfield                 Ambrian Partners Limited [phone]


Hugo de Salis                      St    Brides   Media   & [phone]
                                   Finance Ltd

Susie Callear                      St    Brides   Media   & [phone]
                                   Finance Ltd



This  announcement  has  been  reviewed  by  Mike  Kellow  BSc,  a member of the
Australian  Institute of  Geologists and  Technical Director  of ACR.  Mr Kellow
meets  the definition  of a  "qualified person"  as defined  in the AIM Note for
Mining, Oil and Gas Companies.




[HUG#1423277]