TSX : AUE AIM : AUE

TORONTO , May 7, 2013 /CNW/ - Aureus Mining Inc. (TSX: AUE / AIM: AUE) ("Aureus" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has placed an order for the ball mill for the New Liberty Gold Project ("New Liberty" or the "Project") in Liberia , which is the key plant item as described in its independent technical report dated 1October2012. The placement of this order is part of Aureus' strategy to source the longer-lead key plant items for the New Liberty process plant in sufficient time to facilitate the successful achievement of first gold in December 2014 .

An order has been placed with NCP International Ltd ("NCP") for the supply, delivery and installation of a ball milling system, which is due for delivery in May 2014 . The ball mill has a rating of 145t/hr and is capable of processing at a rate of up to 1.1Mtpa of ore. The civil foundations will have been completed by the time of delivery, ready for the erection and assembly of the mill and supporting equipment. The mill is a critical component in the commissioning process and pre-commissioning checks on the mill are scheduled to be carried out in October 2014 , with first gold production on track for December 2014 .

The other key plant items that will be ordered in Q22013 include the crushers, apron feeder, slurry pumps, spillage pumps, water pumps, carbon pumps, screens as well as the re-grind mill.

The procurement schedule for the ordering of key plant items is being driven by the DRA engineering team and the engineering activities for the overall plant construction are well progressed.

Commenting on the ordering of key plant items, David Reading , President and Chief Executive Officer of Aureus, said:

"We continue to make significant progress on the development and construction of New Liberty. The ordering of the ball mill is another critical step to ensure the timely and successful development of the Project. The placing of the mill order is an exciting step for Aureus, as the mill is the heart of our new process plant. We are pleased to be associated with NCP, which brings many years of milling experience to the Project.

"As a consequence of having all permits in place, key management personnel, an owner team assembled and project debt financing process in place, Aureus continues to de-risk the Project and is well placed to achieve first gold by December 2014."

About Aureus Mining Inc.

The Company's assets include the New Liberty gold deposit in Liberia (the "New Liberty Gold Project" or the "Project"), which has an estimated proven and probable reserve of 910,000 ounces of gold grading 3.3 g/t and an estimated measured and indicated mineral resource of 1,143,000 ounces of gold grading 3.6 g/t and an estimated inferred mineral resource of 593,000 ounces of gold grading 3.2 g/t. A feasibility study has been completed on the Project and construction has commenced with initial earthworks. The Project is expected to have an eight and a half year mine life and annual production of 120,000 ounces for the first five years of production. The Company has financed the Project's equity funding requirement and is in advanced discussions with interested parties to fund the balance.

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Aureus Mining Inc. - Ball mill order for the New Liberty Gold Project