Freewest Updates Exploration Activities on Its 100%-Owned McFaulds Property in Northern Ontario

MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwire - Dec. 10, 2008) - Mackenzie I. Watson, President and CEO of Freewest Resources Canada Inc. (TSX VENTURE:FWR) (the "Company') is pleased to announce additional assay results recently obtained from diamond drill testing of the Black Thor chromite zone. The Black Thor chromite zone is situated on the Company's wholly-owned McFaulds property (the "Property") located 300 kilometres north of Nakina in the James Bay Lowlands of northern Ontario. . The Property, consisting of 4 mineral claims or 1036 hectares, comprises one of three properties in which the Company is currently exploring on its own and in strategic joint-ventures in the emerging "Ring of Fire" metal district.

DIAMOND DRILLING RESULTS:

Drill holes BT-08-03 and 05, are located on grid line 2700N at 229W and 339W, respectively. Both of the holes were drilled to test the lateral continuity of the Black Thor chromite zone, in a broad 1600-metre step-out from the discovery hole BT-08-01, situated on grid line 1100N (see Map 1 and Freewest news releases dated September 29, 2008 and October 17, 2008).

Map 1 comprises part of this news release and is posted on the Freewest website at www.freewest.com.

Highlighting the recent drill assays are wide intersections of chromite mineralization yielding assays of 21.4% Cr2O3 over 109.7 metres in BT-08-03 and 21.3% Cr2O3 across 92.4 metres in drill hole BT-08-05. Both intercepts returned higher grade intervals assaying 30.4% Cr2O3 over 50.1 metres as well as 30.7% CrO3 across 23.3 metres and 30.0% Cr2O3 over 17.3 metres in holes BT-08-03 and BT-08-05, respectively. The details of the chromite intercepts are as follows.

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Hole No.  Coordinates  Dip                 From       To  Interval  % Cr2O3
                                        (metres) (metres)  (metres) 
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BT-08-03 L2700N, 229W  -50·               226.0    335.7     109.7     21.4
                      degr-     including 227.0    236.8       9.0     39.1
                       ees  and including 242.5    253.8      11.3     23.4
                            and including 285.6    335.7      50.1     30.4
                            that includes 313.6    335.7      22.1     40.0
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BT-08-05 L2700N, 339W  -50                386.0    478.4      92.4     21.3
                      degr-     including 386.0    409.3      23.3     30.7
                       ees  and including 453.1    478.4      25.3     27.5
                            that includes 461.1    478.4      17.3     30.0
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In addition to the above assays, the Company also wishes to report the visual results obtained in 2 drill holes collared 100 metres to the southwest of drill hole BT-08-01. Drill holes BT-08-11 and BT-08-12 tested the southwest extent of the Black Thor chromite zone in a 100-metre step-out.

Highlighting the new intercepts is a 50 metre-wide zone of chromite mineralization in BT-08-11 and a 144 metre-wide zone of disseminated, banded, semi-massive and massive chromite in drill hole BT-08-12, a deeper cut under the former. This hole also contains a zone of massive chromite mineralization over a core length of 60 metres. Visual results from BT-08-12 are tabled below:

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INTERVAL                                                        INTERSECTED
(METRES)    DESCRIPTION                                               WIDTH
                                                                    (METRES)
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222.0-243.1 Chromite layers in dunite, estimated to contain
             between 35-40% chromite                                   21.1
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243.1-250.2 Semi-massive chromite mineralization, estimated to
             contain about 60% chromite                                 7.1
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250.2-269.8 Disseminated and cumulate chromite in peridotite           19.6
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269.8-276.4 Semi-massive chromite, estimated to contain about
             60% chromite                                               6.6
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276.4-306.2 Semi-massive chromite with occasional bands of
             green dunite                                              29.8
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306.2-366.4 Massive chromite mineralization                            60.2
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              Total Width of Chromite Zone                            144.4


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Drilling of the Black Thor chromite zone continues to generate exceptional widths of high-quality chromite mineralization believed to be of world-class caliber. To date, the chromite zone has been traced over an intermittent 1700-metre strike length (between grid lines 1000N and 2700N) with an average true width of approximately 60 metres. It remains completely open-ended along strike and to depth.

One drill rig will continue to test the continuity and strike extent of the Black Thor chromite zone up until the Christmas break. Drilling will continue in early 2009 with 2 drill rigs operating, one to test the Black Thor chromite zone and the second to test a number of high-quality copper-nickel-platinum group element targets situated stratigraphically below the Black Thor chromite zone. Further assay results will be released as they become available.

ANALYTICAL PROTOCOL:

All of the assays reported herein were completed by Activation Laboratories of Ancaster, Ontario. High-grade chrome samples are analyzed by the neutron activation method (INAA) involving irradiating the samples prior to the final analyses. The method also provides analyses for elemental chrome and iron as well as Cr2O3.

Donald Hoy, P. Geo. (Ontario),Vice President of Exploration and a Director of Freewest Resources Canada Inc. is the Qualified Person (under National Instrument 43-101) on the McFaulds project and is responsible for the preparation of this news release.

Freewest is a well-financed mineral exploration corporation with over C$7.0 million in working capital. It is actively exploring for gold and base-metals within eastern Canada. Corporate information can be accessed on the Internet at www.freewest.com. Freewest's shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol FWR.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.