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Revised Alacran 43-101 Reserves

Further to Aurcana Corporation's ("Aurcana" or the "Company") news release dated January 18, 2008, the Company is providing additional information from the NI 43-101 compliant reserve estimation on the Alacran deposit of the La Negra mine, Queretaro State, Mexico provided by independent consultants, Wardrop Engineering Inc. (Wardrop). A copy of the Wardrop report will be filed at www.SEDAR.com within 45 days. 

Highlights of the 43-101 Report

  • 434,825 tonnes of mineable reserves, a 98% increase from historically reported reserves.
  • 36,900 tonnes of mined ore stored in stockpiles ready for processing.
  • 181,239 tonnes of inferred resources in addition to the reserves, not reported historically.

Alacran area

Reserves 1,2,3,4

Tonnes

Silver g/t

Lead %

Zinc %

Copper %

NSR

Proven

244,496

71.87

0.24

0.99

0.81

$54.69

Probable

190,329

69.50

0.26

0.89

0.72

$49.98

Proven and Probable

434,825

71.0

0.25

0.95

0.77

$52.70

Proven Stockpile Ore

36,900

110.0

0.42

1.14

0.92

$81.45

Total Reserves

471,725

74.0

0.26

0.98

0.81

$54.95

             

Resource

Tonnes

Silver g/t

Lead %

Zinc %

Copper %

 

Inferred Resource

181,239

69

0.30

1.55

0.66

 

Notes

  1. Reserves Recoverable, Diluted @ 16% at an NSR cut-off of $30/t.
  2. $30/t cut-off takes into account all site operating costs.
  3. Net Smelter Return - corresponds to the amount realized from the sale of mineral products to the smelter, based on the market price at the time of delivery of the finished product after deducting all smelting, refining and transportation costs, charges, recoveries and penalties as defined in the smelter contract. No onsite costs are included.
  4. Estimates based on Alacran data as of May 31, 2007

The Wardrop reserve estimate for the Alacran deposit, (using a $30 per tonne NSR cut-off) is 434,825 tonnes which represents a 98% increase from the historically reported reserve in 2000. The Wardrop estimation also determined a present day NSR value which follows a similar format used by the previous owner accounting for dilution and metallurgical recoveries, and uses metal prices of $12.00 per ounce of Silver (Ag), $2.80 per pound of Copper (Cu), $1.50 per pound of Zinc (Zn). (No value was assigned to the Lead (Pb) content since no lead concentrate is being produced from the Alacran ore). It also factors in concentrate sale terms as negotiated by Aurcana with the concentrate buyer. 

The Wardrop resource estimation also includes an inferred resource category in the estimate which was not included in the previous owners' historically reported reserve estimate. The inferred category included in the table above is a result of a compilation of historical drill holes, and underground sampling completed by Aurcana.

Please note that the tables in the January 18th news release reporting the higher grade cut-off resource estimates have been retracted

The above reserve estimate is based on ore that was present in the Alacran deposit as of May 31, 2007. Subsequent mining from the reserve blocks that formed a part of the reserve estimate has produced a total of:

Category

Tonnes

Silver g/t

Lead%

Zinc %

Copper %

NSR

Mined ore *

60,702

95.21

0.29

1.11

1.15

$69.45

* Based on mine production records, June 1, 2007 to January 8, 2008

The Alacran deposit, where the Company has focused its mining, accounted for approximately 18% of the historical non-compliant reserve at the time of purchase by Aurcana. Combined with the Alacran deposit, another seven zones comprise approximately 84% of the historically reported reserves in 2000. With the receipt of the Alacran reserve study, the Company is proceeding to update the historical reserves within these other seven areas of the mine and based on the results experienced in the Alacran area Aurcana anticipates similar improvements in tonnages, however, the precise increases will require detailed studies as was done by Wardrop on the Alacran area. Work is already progressing well in one area, Monica, where a total of 863 metres of diamond saw cut channel samples have been taken and are being analyzed. These samples are being combined with the historical database.

Based on the mining plan currently in use at Alacran which incorporates site operating costs of US$30/tonne, each tonne of reserve at Alacran is expected to generate an operating profit of US$24.95 based on the NSR value provided in the table on the first page. As such, the reserves at Alacran are expected to produce a net operating profit of US$11.77 million. Based on a mining and processing rate of 1,000 tonnes per day the reserves at Alacran alone will provide mill feed for approximately one and a half years. There are no further capital expenditures required to mine the Alacran reserves.

The Company is also continuing to explore in the Alacran area with work underway to develop access to target areas. A diamond drill program is currently testing the Cristo Rey and Breccia Zones in an effort to expand and upgrade the reserves/resources in these areas. Other priority targets include additional drilling on the Trinidad 1 (stope 1980), 2, and 3 manto zones. Drilling will also commence early this Year on the Monica zone where recent underground mapping and diamond saw cut channel samples have returned encouraging results.

Aurcana remains committed to becoming a mid tier base / precious metals producer. The Company is focused on the acquisition, development and operation of silver, zinc and copper mines with good infrastructure and ore reserves / resources requiring minimal time to re-start. The Company continues to pursue and evaluate other high quality, producing or near producing projects, with the acquisition of any or all of these advanced stage projects, present and proposed cash flow will increase significantly. 

With a 1,000 tonnes per day production established now and an additional 800 tonnes per day being added in 2009, aggressive exploration programs underway on two properties, a strong balance sheet together with a positive outlook for the price of commodities, the future is very promising for Aurcana and its shareholders.

Ron Nichols, P.Eng. a Director and Vice President of Exploration for Aurcana, and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, supervised the preparation of the technical information in this release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF
AURCANA CORPORATION


"Ken Booth", President 

For further information, please contact:
Ken Booth, President or
Jack Barnes, Investor Relations
Aurcana Corporation
Phone: (604) 331-9333
Toll Free: (866) 532-9333
Web site: www.aurcana.com

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements -- This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the business and anticipated financial performance of the Company. These statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from results contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include unsuccessful exploration results, changes in metal prices, changes in the availability of funding for mineral exploration and development, unanticipated changes in key management personnel and general economic conditions. When relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements, oral or written, made by itself or on its behalf.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy and accuracy of this Release.

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