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Bear Creek's Santa Ana Drilling Continues to Expand Silver Mineralization Including High-Grade Intercepts on the Perimeters of the Open Footprint

Posted on: Tuesday, 18 December 2007, 09:00 CST

VANCOUVER, Dec. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bear Creek Mining (TSX Venture: BCM) ("Bear Creek" or the "Company") is pleased to announce results from fifteen additional diamond drill holes (3,483 meters). Drilling at Santa Ana now totals 20,060 meters in 113 drill holes. Santa Ana is located 200 kilometers south of the Company's world class Corani silver-base metal deposit in southeastern Peru. Highlights of this press release include:

- Drill hole SA-48 intersects 128 m @ 70.4 g/t Ag, including 32m @ 171.9 g/t Ag and 1.2% Zn. - Drill hole SA-50 intersects 98m @ 75.2 g/t Ag, including 14m @ 100.7 g/t Ag, 10m @ 141.0 g/t Ag and 0.9% Zn, and 8m @ 312.5 g/t Ag. - Drill hole SA-55 intersects 162m @ 56.9 g/t Ag, including 20m @ 105.5 g/t Ag and 30m @ 102.7 g/t Ag. - Drilling under thin soil cover continues to intersect high-grade mineralization within lower-grade halos. - Mineralized footprint measures 1.8km x 850m and remains open to the north, south and west.

Andrew Swarthout, President and CEO of Bear Creek, states "We are very encouraged that the drilling continues to expand the footprint of the silver mineralization at Sana Ana even as we complete the first resource estimate. The deposit remains open in all directions where mineralized drill holes are already up to 500 meters beyond the limits of the data being included in the resource block model. Importantly, higher-grades are still being intersected near-surface with step-out drilling, indicating that several possible vectors still exist for increasing resource at higher-grades as the district is explored and geologic understanding increases. Preliminary column leach testing strongly points towards a low-cost heap leach extraction. Santa Ana presents a very developable, straight-forward silver deposit with excellent upside potential."

Drilling results are as follow. All intercepts are down-hole lengths and true widths have not been calculated.

------------------------------------------------------------------------- Drill Azi- Incli- Total From To Inter- Silver Lead Zinc Hole muth nation Depth (m) (m) val (grams (%) (%) (#) (deg- (deg- (m) (m) per rees) rees) DTH tonne) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-48 90 -60 260.0 34 162 128 70.4 0.4 0.8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 92 124 32 171.9 0.6 1.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-48A 270 -60 206.2 52 132 80 49.0 0.3 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 70 82 12 90.5 0.4 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- and 124 132 8 247.0 1.2 0.9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-49 280 -60 286.3 150 264 114 37.5 0.4 0.8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 230 248 18 93.0 0.5 0.8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-49A 100 -60 252.5 44 50 6 30.3 0.1 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 106 112 6 69.3 0.4 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 124 130 6 36.3 0.2 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-50 90 -60 239.2 6 104 98 75.2 0.4 0.7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 8 22 14 100.7 0.8 0.5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- and 30 40 10 141.0 0.3 0.9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- and 54 62 8 312.5 0.5 0.5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 174 184 10 50.4 0.2 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-50A 270 -50 283.1 60 106 46 50.4 0.6 0.6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-51 300 -60 170.5 No significant intervals ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-51A 120 -60 233.3 0 124 124 34.3 0.2 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 30 46 16 122.1 0.4 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-52 120 -60 281.8 0 74 74 27.0 0.1 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 36 40 4 88.0 0.3 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-52A 300 -50 235.5 2 56 54 21.0 0.2 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 18 22 4 81.5 0.5 0.4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA 53 270 -50 217.1 No significant intervals ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-53A 90 -50 148.8 14 48 34 84.9 0.4 0.7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 24 42 18 125.0 0.5 0.9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-54 290 -60 211.6 16 58 42 31.4 0.1 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 50 56 6 84.7 0.2 0.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-54A 110 -60 173.1 12 54 42 34.3 0.1 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SA-55 120 -60 284.0 0 162 162 56.9 0.4 0.6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- includes 4 24 20 105.5 0.4 0.4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- and 42 46 4 139.0 0.3 0.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- and 110 140 30 102.7 0.5 0.9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- (Full drill results can be found at http://www.bearcreekmining.com/. To access the silver drill hole map directly please refer to http://www.bearcreekmining.com/i/pdf/pdfDHmapSantaAnaFINALDec17.pdf / To access the Santa Ana Cross Section A-A': http://www.bearcreekmining.com/i/pdf/pdfSectionASantaAnaFINALDec17.pdf)

Drilling continues to intersect blind, high-grade structures within large halos of lower grade heap-leach material (SA- 48, 49, 50, 51A and 55). Initial drill testing under the post-mineral tuff cover to the west of the mineralized footprint has successfully intersected blind, high-grade structures (SA-48 and 48A). The continued intersection of mineralization under cover, in conjunction with a rock grid sample anomaly of 90 g/t Ag on the west side of the post-mineral tuff cover, indicates that the mineralization could continue to the west for an additional 200 meters beneath shallow, untested cover. Rock and soil grid anomalies to the south have now been drill tested with significant intersections (SA-55) validating these methods for exploration under cover. Soil and rock geochem sample grids are now being expanded. Due to Christmas Holidays, drilling was temporarily suspended on December 14 and will commence again with 2 rigs on January 14, 2008. An additional drill is being considered during Q1 '08. Data is being assembled that will allow for the first resource estimation anticipated in early 2008.

Santa Ana Metallurgy

The column tests have been completed at McClelland Labs, Sparks, Nevada. The material is now being rinsed and the residual leached rock is being assayed to determine the final recovery values and reagent consumptions. The Company expects the results of the final assays by the end of the year. The results of these column tests will form the basis for the processing component of the Preliminary Economic Assessment anticipated in Q1 '08.

Santa Ana Resource and Engineering

Independent Mining Consultant is completing their work on the geological block model and Bear Creek will use this model to determine the first resource estimate. The Company expects the resource estimate to be complete early next year. Independent Mining Consultants will be preparing preliminary mining plans for the project that will be utilized in the upcoming Preliminary Economic Assessment.

Several engineering studies are being performed by the Vector Engineering office in Lima Peru to establish the costs of the heap leach and infrastructure components of the project. These studies will be incorporated into the upcoming Preliminary Economic Assessment. Andrew Swarthout, President and CEO of Bear Creek, comments "We are very pleased with the progress of the engineering elements that are being assembled for the scoping study in Q1 '08."

Exercise of Option

Bear Creek has exercised its option under its agreement with a Peruvian individual on December 12, thus acquiring ownership of an undivided, 100% interest in the Santa Ana silver project.

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

All of Bear Creek's exploration programs and pertinent disclosure of a technical or scientific nature are prepared by or prepared under the direct supervision of David Volkert, P.Geo., Bear Creek's Vice President of Exploration and/or Marc Leduc, P. Eng., Vice President of Technical Services and the President and CEO, Andrew Swarthout, P.Geo., who serve as the Qualified Persons under the definitions of NI 43-101. All diamond drilling has been performed using HQ diameter core with recoveries averaging greater than 95%. Core is logged and split on site under the supervision of Bear Creek geologists. Sampling is done on two-meter intervals and samples are transported by Company staff to Juliaca, Peru for direct shipping to ALS Chemex, Laboratories in Lima, Peru. ALS Chemex is an ISO 9001:2000-registered laboratory and is preparing for ISO 17025 certification. Silver, lead, and zinc assays utilize a multi-acid digestion with atomic absorption ("ore-grade assay method"). The QC/QA program includes the insertion every 20th sample of known standards prepared by SGS Laboratories, Lima. A section in Bear Creek's website is dedicated to sampling, assay and quality control procedures.

Certain disclosure in this release, including management's assessment of Bear Creek's plans and projects, constitutes forward-looking statements that are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors relating to Bear Creek's operation as a mineral exploration company that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. (x) Any reference to the potential quantity & grade of mineralization at Corani is conceptual in nature, there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource on the property and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in discovery of a mineral resource on the property. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Bear Creek expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

CONTACT: Andrew Swarthout - President and CEO, or Patrick De Witt - Investor Relations, Phone: (604) 685-6269, Direct: (604) 628-1111, E-mail: info@bearcreekmining.com; For further information, please visit the Company's website (http://www.bearcreekmining.com/)

Bear Creek Mining Corporation

CONTACT: Andrew Swarthout - President and CEO, or Patrick De Witt -Investor Relations, Phone: (604) 685-6269, Direct: (604) 628-1111, E-mail:info@bearcreekmining.com; For further information, please visit the Company'swebsite (http://www.bearcreekmining.com/)

Source: PRNewswire-FirstCall

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