Delrand Updates Northern DRC Diamond Exploration Activity

• 10 targets identified for further detailed follow-up work after 2011 follow-up stream sampling program in Northern DRC produced 48 diamonds, 12 ilmenites, 21 chromites and 7 garnets.

TORONTO, Aug. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Delrand Resources Limited ("Delrand" or the "Company") (TSX-DRN; JSE-DRN) provides an update on its diamond exploration activities in northern Democratic Republic of the Congo (the "DRC"), which activities are being carried out in partnership with Rio Tinto.

The northern DRC has a long history of good quality alluvial diamonds. To date no primary sources, or kimberlites, for these diamonds have been found. Delrand, with its partner Rio Tinto, have prospected large areas in the provinces of Equateur and Orientale and are now focussed on their Coexco and Bomili exploration projects in the latter province.

Delrand's first-phase exploration program over the Coexco ground in the northern DRC was completed in 2009. The 44 Coexco exploration permit areas were covered by an initial reconnaissance program when stream samples were collected at a density of roughly one sample for every 20 to 25km². Samples were screened to plus 0.4mm and minus 0.7mm. As previously reported, 12 of the 255 samples produced 15 diamonds and in addition, five ilmenites, 27 chromites (including nine from the diamond inclusion field) and one eclogitic garnet were also found in the samples. These positive results were restricted to 16 of the 44 Coexco permit areas.

A follow-up stream sampling program was conducted in 2011 over these 16 exploration permit areas. Samples were collected on an approximate density of one sample every 5km². As previously reported, this program produced 48 diamonds, 12 ilmenites, 21 chromites and 7 garnets. These results are highly anomalous for two reasons. Firstly, these positive samples are located in the same streams as the samples which produced positive results from the initial reconnaissance work and therefore confirm the existence of these anomalies. And secondly, the area of interest is covered by a thick laterite crust, up to at least 10 metres in thickness, masking the underlying geology, including kimberlites, but at the same time chemically etching and hence destroying the kimberlitic minerals otherwise trapped in these soils. The presence of kimberlitic minerals in stream or soils samples in these areas is therefore highly depressed.

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