Norsemont Provides Constancia Project Update

    -  Chilloroya access agreement concluded
    -  Exploration drilling set to resume
    -  Constancia ESIA Public Audience Completed

    Shares Issued and Outstanding: 81,739,000
    TSX: NOM
    BVL: NOM

TORONTO, ON and LIMA, Peru, June 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ – Norsemont Mining Inc. (“the Company”) (TSX: NOM, BVL: NOM) is pleased to announce that on June 12, 2010, the Company signed an agreement with the community of Chilloroya for its annual access contract, which allows Norsemont access to the community’s surface rights overlying the Company’s extensive mineral rights. The access contract, which is to be ratified by the community assembly on June 20, 2010, provides Norsemont access to the new exploration targets at Chilloroya South and Pampacancha.

Norsemont has begun the mobilization of four drill rigs to drill test both the Pampacancha and Chilloroya South targets. A first phase program of approximately 13,000 metres, which is expected to resume before the end of the month, will further define skarn mineralization at Pampacancha and test a cluster of strong chargeability anomalies at Chilloroya South. The new discoveries at Chilloroya South have individual dimensions of 1,000 x 900 metres over an area of 4km x 3km. A reconnaissance program conducted last year revealed strong surficial evidence of porphyry related Cu-Au-Mo mineralization. Of the 152 rock chip samples taken 52% reported values from 0.1g/t to 7.84 g/t Au, 85% were anomalous in copper with values from 70ppm to 1.33% Cu and 40% anomalous in molybdenum with values 10ppm to 446 ppm Mo.

In addition, the Company is also pleased to announce that the Executive Summary and the Public Participation Plan elements of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for the Constancia Project were approved for public dissemination by the Peru’s Ministry of Energy and Mines (MINEM). On June 3, 2010, the ESIA public audience was held and attended by approximately 1,500 people from communities in the vicinity of Constancia. The forum was chaired by representatives from the Ministry of Energy and Mines and the Regional Direction of Energy and Mines. Technical presentations were made by representatives from consulting groups Knight Piesold, Social Capital Group and MWH. Based on established regulations, the ESIA approval process should not exceed 120 days and, barring any unforeseen obstacles, the Company expects to receive final approval of the ESIA by October 2010.

Commenting, Norsemont President and COO Bob Baxter said: “We are very pleased to have finalised the negotiations with the community of Chilloroya and now have full access to the new exploration targets which are very promising and have the potential to add materially to our current resource.”

The Company also provided an update on the ongoing Constancia optimization study.

    1. Peru's Ministry of Transportation has advised Norsemont that a
       privately funded project plans to extend the rail link from Imata to
       Tintaya over a distance of approximately 120 km. The extension of the
       railway to Tintaya will have a positive impact on the transportation
       of concentrate from Constancia. Once in operation, Norsemont will use
       the new rail system to transport concentrate to the Port of Matarani,
       which will enhance the project economics and also reduce social and
       environmental risks.

    2. Preliminary estimates indicate that a zinc concentrate product can be
       produced at Constancia. Production of a separate zinc concentrate is
       expected to contribute to Constancia's projected by-product revenues
       and also eliminate the zinc penalties that were previously accounted
       for in the project economics. Norsemont is currently conducting
       additional testing, which will be complete in late June, to verify
       these assumptions.

    3. The potential for a new mine plan incorporating Constancia's current
       inferred resource has been reviewed. Additional drilling requirements
       for upgrading the "inferred" ore category to "measured" is currently
       under review. Upgrading Constancia's inferred resource is expected to
       have a further positive impact to the project's NPV.

Full results of the Constancia optimisations study are expected during the third quarter of 2010.

ABOUT NORSEMONT MINING – Norsemont is a mineral exploration and development company advancing the Constancia Copper project in Southern Peru. The Company’s Constancia project is located in Cusco department, approximately 100 kilometres south of Cusco, Peru. The company’s shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NOM, and on the Bolsa de Valores, Lima (BVL) also under the symbol NOM.

The technical information provided in this press release was reviewed and approved by Robert. W. Baxter (MAusIMM), the President and a director of the Company and a qualified person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101.

SOURCE Norsemont Mining Inc.