News

Columbus Gold Acquires Three New Nevada Gold Projects

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. January 11, 2007. Columbus Gold Corporation (CGT: TSX-V) ("Columbus Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has acquired three Nevada gold projects (the "Properties"), all strategically located within Nevada's historic mining districts. The acquisitions, described in more detail below, increase the Company's total project portfolio to twenty-five, 100% owned properties (subject to royalties), 20 of which are gold projects located in Nevada. Eleven of the Company's properties are joint ventured to major and junior mining companies.

The Red Hills and White Horse Flats properties were acquired by staking and Scraper Springs is controlled through lease agreements ("Leases"). Under the terms of the Leases, Columbus Gold is obligated to make annual escalating lease payments of US$17,500 before the first anniversary of the Leases rising to US$90,000 in year 7 of the Leases and thereafter for the 15 year terms of the Leases. The Leases are renewable indefinitely provided that there are mining activities on the property. The Properties are subject to net smelter royalties of between 2% and 4.5%.

The Scraper Springs Property consists of 276 unpatented mineral claims and 405 hectares (ha) (1,000 acres) of patented land, covering approximately 2,710 ha (6,700 acres) in total. The property is 72 kilometres (km) (45 miles) north of Battle Mountain, Nevada, and is located directly on the northern extension of the Carlin Trend of gold deposits. The property covers a volcanic center cored by a quartz monzonite intrusive cutting Upper Plate Vinini Formation cherts and siltstones. Highly altered volcanic rocks, coeval with the intrusive, lie marginal to the central core, with Vinini Formation exposed in erosional windows below the volcanic package.

The area was first explored by Western States Minerals, which drilled 13 holes to a maximum vertical depth of 198 metres (m) (650 feet). Western States drill hole SS-1 encountered a strongly anomalous gold zone from 93 to 143 m (305 to 470 feet), including 26 m (85 feet) of 0.86 grams/tonne (g/t) Au from 98 to 123 m (320 to 405 feet). High assays over 5 foot intervals were as high as 1.9 g/t. The gold is hosted by cherts and siltstones of the Upper Plate Vinini Formation alongside the quartz monzonite intrusive rock. This gold mineralization has a Carlin-type geochemical signature.

The intrusive body is dated at 38.9 mybp, which is the age of igneous rocks associated with gold deposits elsewhere on the Carlin Trend. A detailed ground magnetic survey indicates that the poorly exposed intrusive body is approximately 1,676 m (5,500 feet) long, and 671 m (2,200 feet) in diameter. Detailed geologic mapping has been completed along with soil and rock sampling. Numerous gold anomalies were discovered in the grid soil sampling, and rock values to 0.8 g/t were found along altered structures.

Twelve widely-spaced rotary holes were drilled, mostly to depths less than 183 m (600 feet). One hole was drilled to 579 m (1,900 feet), and encountered altered carbonate rocks of the Lower Plate of the Roberts Mountain Thrust at a vertical depth of 503 m (1,650 feet). The Lower Plate rocks were mostly silicified, and contained anomalous gold, copper to 0.2% over 15 m (50 feet), and zinc to greater than 1% over 1.5 m (five feet) intervals. Many of the other shallow holes had anomalous gold, zinc, and arsenic.

Three types of targets exist at Scraper Springs: 1) disseminated zones in the altered volcanic package, 2) Carlintype gold deposits distal to the intrusive body, both in Vinini Formation and in the Lower Plate package at depth, and 3) either porphyry-hosted base-metals or polymetallic, gold-bearing skarns associated with the intrusive itself.

The Red Hills Property consists of 51 mineral claims, covering approximately 426 ha (1,054 acres), located 56 km (35 miles) northeast of Ely in White Pine County, Nevada and covers the eastern portion of the Red Hills mining district.

Historic work at Red Hills identified lead, zinc, and silver breccia pipes and replacements in the Ordovician Pogonip Limestone, in particular near bodies of intrusive rock. Sampling of the Nine Mile Member of the Pogonip by Columbus has yielded numerous anomalous gold values ranging from 0.3 to 1.1 g/t Au, with little associated lead and zinc. The gold showings are in jasperoid and weakly silicified platy limestone and siltstone of the Nine Mile Member and could represent Carlin-type gold deposits distal to the lead-zinc mineralization. There is no known past drilling on the Red Hills Property.
The White Horse Flats Property consists of 74 mineral claims, covering approximately 618 ha (1,529 acres), located 43 km (27 miles) south of Wendover, Nevada. The property is 13 km (8 miles) east of the Kinsley Mine, which produced approximately 400,000 ounces of gold from a Carlin-type deposit mined by Cominco in the mid-1980's.

White Horse Flats covers three small hills and the surrounding pediment to the east. Exposures on the three hills are Devonian Guilmette Limestone, overlain by altered Mississippian Pilot Shale. Alteration in the Pilot Shale is weak to strong silicification with common liesegang banding. The altered section is thought to dip east under shallow gravel cover and the property is positioned to cover this target. Six initial samples of these altered rocks yielded anomalous gold (0.05-0.40 g/t) with highly anomalous arsenic, antimony, and mercury. This geochemical association is characteristic of the Carlin-type gold deposits of Nevada. Such deposits in Nevada hosted in the Pilot Shale, or stratigraphic equivalents, include the Alligator Ridge and Rain deposits, both of which produced 1,000,000 ounces of gold.

Andy Wallace is a Certified Professional Geologist (CPG) with the American Institute of Professional Geologists and is the Qualified Person under NI 43-101 who has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this news release. Mr. Wallace is a partner of Cordilleran Exploration Company ("Cordex"), which is conducting exploration and project generation activities for Columbus Gold on an exclusive basis.

ABOUT COLUMBUS GOLD

Columbus Gold Corporation is a gold exploration and development Company operating principally in Nevada. The Company has an experienced management group with a strong background in all aspects of the acquisition, exploration, development and financing of precious metal mining projects. Columbus controls a 100% interest, subject to royalties, in 20 gold projects strategically located along or near Nevada's most productive gold trends and 5 silver and copper projects located in Arizona and Utah. The Company's project activities are managed by Cordilleran Exploration Company ("Cordex"), owned and operated by John Livermore and Andy Wallace who have a long and successful history of gold discovery and mine development in Nevada.

The Company maintains active generative (prospecting) and evaluation programs and, as a key element of strategy, broadens exposure, minimizes risk and maintains focus on high priority prospects while seeking industry finance through joint ventures on selected projects. The Company currently has 11 of its projects joint ventured to major and junior mining companies.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD,
Robert Giustra
President & CEO, Director

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For more information contact:

Ray Lagace
Investor Relations
604-638-3474
info@columbusgoldcorp.com

Allegiant Gold Ltd.

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