Cambrian Invests in Resmex

RNS Number:8859S
Cambrian Mining PLC
19 October 2005



19 October 2005


                              Cambrian Mining Plc
                         ("Cambrian" or "the Company")

                          New investment in Resmex Plc


Cambrian announced today that it has invested #1.0 million through the purchase
of 50 million new ordinary shares in Resmex Plc ("Resmex") (representing 22.3%
of Resmex's issued ordinary share capital as enlarged by the issues referred to
in the announcement released by Resmex today) at a price of 2p per share.
Cambrian has entered into an orderly market arrangement with Resmex in relation
to such shares for a period of 12 months from their admission to trading on AIM.


Resmex has agreed to invest the funds raised from this share issue in a
co-investment with Cambrian in the ordinary shares of an Australian company,
Xtract Oil Limited ("Xtract Oil").  Xtract Oil, in conjunction with Australia's
CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation), aims to
develop commercially effective technology to unlock oil reserves in oil shale
deposits and to test the technology using oil shale deposits in an area in
Queensland, Australia in relation to which it has an option over exploration
rights.  Xtract Oil has had no material trading to date and does not have any
significant assets or liabilities other than rights to the technology referred
to above.


Under an agreement it has entered into with Cambrian, Resmex has agreed to pay
Cambrian A$1.0 million (#0.4 million at an exchange rate of A$2.33/#1) for half
of the ordinary shares in Xtract Oil owned by Cambrian; as a result each company
will own 9 million shares in Xtract Oil (each representing 21.7% of Xtract Oil's
issued share capital) together with options over 4.5 million Xtract Oil shares.


Resmex has also agreed to purchase from Cambrian half of any further Xtract Oil
shares which Cambrian acquires under:

(i)  an offer by Cambrian to acquire up to 50% of the Xtract Oil
     shares not already owned by it and Resmex and under which Cambrian has 
     agreed to acquire 4.2 million shares; and

(ii) an underwriting arrangement with Xtract Oil under which Cambrian has agreed 
     to underwrite a public offer of 20 million shares expected
     to be made by Xtract Oil by 30 November 2005 followed by a listing on the 
     ASX.  Cambrian will subscribe for a minimum of 11.8 million shares in the 
     Xtract Oil public offer.


In the event that Cambrian takes up the maximum 20 million shares in the Xtract
Oil public offer, the result will be that Cambrian and Resmex will each hold
21.1 million shares in Xtract Oil representing 34.3% of Xtract Oil's share
capital as enlarged by the public offer offer.


For further information contact:


Cambrian Mining Plc

John Byrne

+44 (0) 20 7409 0890


Parkgreen Communications

Cathy Malins / Annabel Leather

+44 (0) 20 7493 3713


Notes to Editors:

Oil shale is a 40-50 million-year-old sedimentary rock, which contains a solid
hydrocarbon, kerogen. Kerogen is basically "fossilised algae" which has been
formed during the deposition of sediments in ancient lake environments. The
effects of time, pressure and temperature have transformed these sediments into
a hydrocarbon-bearing rock, known as oil shale.


In its natural state oil shale contains no liquid hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbon
component can only be liberated by the application of heat. A retorting or
heating process carries out the extraction of the hydrocarbon component. This
involves the heating of the oil shale, which forces the decomposition of the
kerogen and the release of hydrocarbons as a vapour. The hydrocarbon vapour,
when cooled, becomes liquid oil and gas.


Conventional oil is formed through a similar process, conducted over millions of
years of deposition.


Australia's known in situ oil shale deposits is around 30 billion barrels of 
oil*.  Approximately, 20 billion barrels are located in ten deposits throughout
central Queensland close to infrastructure, a skilled workforce and port
facilities. The silica based deposits are much easier to heat or 'retort', than
the more common carbonate shales found in other countries and are more
environmentally friendly to process.


*As at 2002.

                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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