SPOKANE, WASHINGTON - February 23, 2009
- Minera Andes Inc. (the "Corporation" or "Minera Andes", TSX:MAI and
US OTC:MNEAF) is pleased to announce that Robert R. McEwen has been
appointed as Executive Chairman of Minera Andes. Minera Andes has also
appointed two new directors, Messrs. Richard Brissenden and Michael
Stein. Minera Andes also announced that Dr. Arthur D. (Darryl)
Drummond has retired as a director of the Corporation after almost 13
years of service.
Mr. McEwen is the Chairman and CEO of U.S. Gold (TSX and AMEX:
UXG). He is a recipient of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest
civilian honor. A leading Canadian mining industry entrepreneur, with
active exploration underway in Nevada and Mexico, Mr. McEwen was the
founder, former chairman and CEO of Goldcorp Inc., which he built from
an investment company with a $50 million market capitalization to one
of the largest gold-mining companies in the world with an $8 billion
market capitalization by the time he retired from the company. His
achievements in natural resources have been recognized with such honors
as The Northern Miner's Man of the Year Award; Ernst & Young's
Ontario Entrepreneur of the Year in the Energy Category; and the
Developer of the Year Award from the Prospectors and Developers
Association of Canada.
Mr. Richard Brissenden is a chartered accountant with more than 25
years experience in the mining and exploration sector. He serves as a
director on several mining companies, including Canuc Resources
Corporation, Excellon Resources Inc., Corona Gold Corporation, Lexam
Explorations and Valdez Gold. He has previously served as a director of,
amongst others, Metco Resources., which was purchased by Breakwater
Resources Ltd. in 2008 and Hudbay Minerals Inc. from June 2003 to 2006.
Mr. Stein has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MPI
Group Inc., a company engaged in real estate investment and
development, since 1994. Mr. Stein has also held the position of
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MICC Properties Inc., a
company engaged in real estate investment and development, since 1987.
Mr. Stein is also currently the Chairman of Canadian Apartment
Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (CAP REIT). Between 1978 and
1987, Mr. Stein held progressively senior positions, ultimately
holding the position of Executive Vice President responsible for
operations, with The Mortgage Insurance Co. of Canada. Mr. Stein was a
director of Moneysworth & Best Shoe Care Inc. between 1997 and
2000. Mr. Stein was also a member of the Board of Directors of
Goldcorp Inc., a public natural resource company the shares of which
are listed on the TSX and New York Stock Exchange, between 2000 and
2006. Mr. Stein is a graduate engineer and holds a Master of Business
Administration in Finance and International Business from Columbia
University in New York.
Messrs. Brissenden and Stein were nominated for appointment by Mr.
McEwen, pursuant to the rights he has in connection with the private
placement he recently completed with Minera Andes.
Mr. Ambrose, President and Chief Executive Officer of Minera Andes
said "I look forward to the contributions of these new, highly
experienced board members as Minera Andes continues to grow and uses
its ongoing income to create new asset value and market awareness. We
are also very pleased that Rob McEwen has agreed to take on a more
active executive role with the Corporation."
Dr. Drummond is a self-employed consulting geological engineer who
lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. On behalf of the Corporation,
Mr. Ambrose thanked Dr. Drummond for his many years of service to the
Corporation. Mr. Ambrose said "I am very grateful to Darryl for his
long-time service on the Board and his guidance, as Minera Andes has
grown from an early-stage exploration company to an emerging gold/silver
production company with excellent prospects for growth."
The Board of Directors of the Corporation now consists of Robert
R. McEwen, Executive Chairman, Allen V. Ambrose, President and Chief
Executive Officer, Richard W. Brissenden, Victor Lazarovici, Allan J.
Marter, Dr. Donald Quick and Michael L. Stein.
Minera Andes is a gold, silver and copper exploration company
working in Argentina. The Corporation holds approximately 304,000
acres of mineral exploration land in Argentina. Minera Andes holds a
49% interest in the San José Project, an operating gold and silver
mine. Minera Andes is also exploring the Los Azules copper project in
San Juan province, where an exploration program has defined a
resource and a preliminary assessment has been completed. Other
exploration properties, primarily silver and gold, are being evaluated
in southern Argentina. The Corporation has 208,458,821 common shares
issued and outstanding.
This news release is submitted by Allen V. Ambrose, President and Chief Executive Officer of Minera Andes Inc.
For further information, please contact: Art Johnson at the
Spokane office, or Krister A. Kottmeier, investor relations -- Canada,
at the Vancouver office. Visit our Web site: www.minandes.com.
Spokane Office
111 East Magnesium Road; Ste. A
Spokane, WA 99208 USA
Phone: (509) 921-7322
E-mail: info@minandes.com
Vancouver Office
911-470 Granville Street
Vancouver, B.C. V6C 1V5
Phone: (604) 689-7017; 877-689-7018
E-mail: ircanada@minandes.com
Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release contains certain forward-looking statement
and information. The forward-looking statements and information
express, as at the date of this press release, the Corporation's
plans, estimates, forecasts, projections, expectations or beliefs as
to future events and results. Forward-looking statements involve a
number of risks and uncertainties, and there can be no assurance that
such statements will prove to be accurate. Therefore, actual results
and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in
such statements. In particular, there can be no assurance that
financing will be secured within the time required. Risks and
uncertainties that could cause results or future events to differ
materially from current expectations expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, factors
associated with fluctuations in the market price of precious metals,
mining industry risks, risks associated with foreign operations, the
state of the capital markets, environmental risks and hazards,
uncertainty as to calculation of mineral reserves and other risks.
|