Re Agreement

RNS Number:3322T
Minco PLC
17 December 2003

               Minco plc Secures La Laguna Silver Project Licence



Minco Plc is pleased to announce that it has received confirmation from the
Zacatecas State Director of Conagua (Mexican National Water Authority) that the
licence has been issued, and will be registered in early 2004, to extract the
silver-rich tailings contained within La Laguna Zacatecana in Mexico. This
licence will be for a period of 20 years and entitles Minco to extract 6 million
cubic meters of tailings from the lake.



The Laguna project is located east of the municipality of Guadalupe, Zacatecas
State, and contains gold, silver and mercury tailings produced from silver
amalgam plants, operated under Spanish Colonial rule, from the 16th to the 19th
Century.



Minco previously announced, in October 2003, that it had entered into a separate
agreement with certain surface landowners to sample terrestrial tailings around
the La Laguna Zacatecana.



The La Laguna project was the subject of an independent pre-feasibility study in
the mid 1990's when the entire resource was estimated as containing 55 M oz
silver and 130,000 oz gold. Minco plans to commence a complete evaluation of the
La Laguna project, including an update of the pre-feasibility study.



Roger Turner, deputy chairman commented: "This is a vital step on the road
toward Minco becoming a precious metals miner. Silver is booming and Mexico is
the world's principal silver producer."



Contacts :

Matthew Dorman            Tel  [phone] or ([phone]
                          E- mail :  [e-mail]



Richard Thornton          Tel [phone] and 07957 687 386
                          E-mail : [e-mail]



John Teeling              Tel.      (+ 353)  1 833 2833

                          E-mail    : [e-mail]



Roger Turner              Tel       (+44)  1273 495 500

                          E-mail     :[e-mail]





MINCO is a precious metals development and exploration company traded on the AIM
market in London. Ticker symbol (MIO), www.minco.ie




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