Premium Exploration Completes Phase-One Drill Program and Extends Strike Length at Friday Petsite Gold Project, Idaho

Jul. 9, 2009 (TheNewswire.ca) --

VANCOUVER,BRITISHCOLUMBIA (July 9, 2009) - Premium Exploration (OOTC:PMMEF)Inc.(TSX-V:PEM)("Premium" or the "Company") is pleased to announcethecompletion of the Phase One - Seven hole drill program thathas successfully extended the strike length of the Orogrande Shear Zoneby175 meters (574 feet) at it's Friday-Petsite gold project incentralIdaho, USA.

The drill program consisted of seven HQ coreholes drilled to a maximum down-hole depth of 153 meters (502 feet).The drill program was completed ahead of schedule, despiteinclement weather and muddy conditions making drill moves difficult.Total footage drilled was 853.4 meters (2800 feet) which was an increaseof 6.7 % (53.4 meters) over the original scheduled footage, whilethe direct drilling cost was 7.3% less than the budget estimate.Please clickhttp://www.premiumexploration.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/pem-2009-completed-drill-program.pdffora map of the completed drill program.

Premium commends West-CoreDrilling, LLC of Elko, Nevada for their professional staff and highquality, well maintained equipment, which enabled the company to complete the program ahead of schedule and under budget.

The programwas designed to test continuity of the Orogrande Shear Zone(OSZ) alongstrike to the north and south of the existing resource andto provideminor in-fill drilling for information which will be used tore-assessthe NI 43-101 compliant resource. The data from this program will likelyupgrade a significant portion of the resource.

The geologic modelas developed by Premium geologists and consultants predicted continuity of the OSZ to the north and south with a steepeasterly dip to themineralization as opposed to a westerly dip inferred by previousoperators.

Drilling confirmed a steep easterly dip (approximately65-75 degrees) and intersected the OSZ to the north of the main zone of mineralization in drill hole PFR2009-3 and most importantly intersected the OSZ south of Quartz Creek in holesPFR2009-6 7, which is south ofthe main zone of mineralization.

Drill hole location, azimuth, dip and total depth, are listed in the following table:

Hole        E_NAD83     N_NAD83      Elevation (m)   Azimuth   Dip     Total Depth (Ft)   Total Depth (m)   
PFR2009_1   613550.84   5062241.95   1428.21         263.0     -65.2   502.00             153.01            
PFR2009_2   613562.68   5062283.21   1420.30         270.3     -64.3   405.00             123.44            
PFR2009_3   613555.58   5062319.40   1408.17         270.9     -64.6   392.00             119.48            
PFR2009_4   613541.22   5062017.31   1407.39         268.1     -79.8   484.00             147.52            
PFR2009_5   613550.92   5062179.41   1447.53         265.6     -66.1   451.00             137.46            
PFR2009_6   613583.25   5061948.73   1427.12         273.1     -70.6   247.00             75.29             
PFR2009_7   613583.25   5061948.73   1427.12         0.0       -90.0   319.00             97.23       

Drillholes PFR2009-6 and PFR2009-7 (located south of QuartzCreek)intersected intensely sheared and altered Muscovite-SericiteSchist with associated sulphides indicative of OSZ mineralization asfound in the main zone of mineralization. The two drill holes weredrilled in the same location with one having a -65 degree dip and theother a -90degree dip. With this geometry, a true easterly dip of 75degrees has been confirmed.

These two holes also extend the strikelength oft he OSZ by 100 meters to the south and are located on thenorth end of a1200 meter (4,000 foot) gold in soil geochemical anomaly.This confirms the probability that the anomaly is likely related tothe continuation of the OSZ to the south. Additional drilling plannedfor Phase 2 will be designed to delineate the continuity ofthe mineralization associated with the OSZ to the south of the main zone.

PFR2009-3,thenorthern-most drill hole in the program, intersected shear zone materialand has increased the strike length of the OSZ by 75 meters to the north.

Basedon drilling by previous operators and core logging of the new core, goldmineralization occurs in two distinct forms; primary fine grained goldmineralization is associated withPyrite, Arsenopyrite, and likelyLollingite (iron arsenide), and asecond coarser gold phase which islikely associated with apost-mineral Dacite Dike remobilizing theprimary gold. Additional investigations will be conducted to determineif there is any significance to the Lollingite-gold association whichmay be useful in future drilling programs.

The host rock in theshear zone is predominately Muscovite-Sericite Schist with sericitealtered Quartz Monzonite to a lesser extent. Pyrite, Arsenopyrite andLollingite are disseminated and also occur within quartz/carbonateveinlets.

The country rock near the OSZ bounding faults (MondayFault on the west,Friday Fault on the east), is Quartz Monzonite andexhibits minorsulphide mineralization, however it is relativelyun-mineralized with respect to gold.

The drill core from Phase 1has been logged in its entirety by the onsite geologists and corecutting and sampling has been completed as of Thursday July 9th, 2009. Atotal of 685 core samples have been shipped to Acme AnalyticalLaboratories of Vancouver,B.C. to date, with the remaining samplesslated for shipment early next week.

The drill program wasdesigned to take advantage of HQ size core, which provides larger drillcore for logging and sampling purposes and also reduces the potentialfor core loss in highly altered and sheared rocks. A Triple-Tube CoreBarrel was also used to maximize recovery. Geotechnical data (RQD) isalso being collected for futureuse in the assessment of the resourcefor the suitability of surface orunderground mining methods.

AcmeAnalytical Laboratories ofVancouver, B.C. a lab certified for theprovision of assays and geochemical analyses (ISO 9001:2008) has beenselected to process and assay the core.

Assay results are expectedby July 30th and will be incorporated into the existing database. Thedata will then be utilized to design Phase 2 of the ongoing explorationand development of the company's gold properties in Idaho.

QA/QC

Thedrill core is placed in numbered core boxes by the drilling contractorand transferred from the drill site to the core logging station by theproject geologist and kept under direct

control of PremiumExploration personnel. Once the core has been logged and sampleintervals selected by thegeologist, the core is split in halflengthwise with a diamond bladed

core saw by trained personnel.One half of the core is kept in the core boxfor future reference, whilethe second half is placed in numbered plastic (new) sample bags, sealedand placed in numbered sample boxesfor shipment to the assay lab. Thesample boxes are sealed and shippedvia courier to Acme Labs.

Dueto the presence of visible gold in some of the core, assay procedureshave been discussed with the lab to ensure that the method selectedwould best represent the actual gold content and not over or underreport grade. The majority of the core will be assayed utilizingstandard one-assay ton, while samples withv isible gold will be analyzedusing a metallic screening and sieving method. This method is designedto provide a quantitative gold assay on samples that have coarseparticulate gold. The screening procedure separates the coarse gold fromthe fine gold, which makes it easier to get a total gold assay resultfor that particular sample. The method isdescribed as follows:

1. 1.Crush, Pulverize and Sieve 500 grams to -150 mesh, save +150 mesh for metallic gold assay.
2. 2.The pulverized sample (500 grams) is then passed through a "150" mesh screen and the "plus" and "minus" fraction are saved and weighed.
3. 3.The entire "plus" fraction is then fire assayed to get the total gold and a 1 Assay Ton fire assay is done on the "minus" fraction.

The selection criteria for samples to be analyzed by metallic screening will be:

- Samples with visible gold.

- 3 sample intervals prior to the sample with visible gold.

- 3 sample intervals after the sample with visible gold.

- Any samples with a "standard" fire assay returning assay greater than 10 gram per ton gold.

- 20 samples selected based on geologic similarities to samples with visible gold.

The purposeof the enhanced assaying procedures will be to develop a statisticaldatabase to determine the variability of the mineralization. This willprovide data to assist Premium in developing procedures for samplecollection and assaying which are representative of the mineralizationand reduce the potential for inconsistent results.

Contract negotiationsare underway with West-Core Drilling, LLC.; for Phase 2 drilling whichwould continue the drilling on the Friday-Petsite property and inaddition, would include drilling on the Buffalo Gulch property. Approval for drilling on Bureau of Land Management lands on the Buffalo Gulch project is in place and permitting for drilling on Forest Service Landsin the Deadwood area is also underway.

Qualified Person

Mr.Wilf Struck, P.Eng., is the CEO of Premium Exploration Inc. and theQualified Person for the technical information in the news release under NationalInstrument 43-101.

About Premium Exploration, Inc.PremiumExploration Inc. (TSX-V:PEM) is an explorer and developer ofpreciousmetals projects with significant potential for near-termproduction andgrowth. Our projects are located in the USA and Mexico;stable regionswhere we have a history of success. Our

team is committed tounlocking mineral wealth for our shareholders by discovering,developing, and permitting precious metals assets toproduction. TheCompany's portfolio includes one of the largest land packages in Idaho,including an NI 43-101 gold resource (OTCBB:GORO) ,a PGM explorationproject in Montana, and a past-producing silverproject in Mexico. Foradditional information, please visit us atwww.premiumexploration.com.

For More Information, Please Contact:

Mr.Wilf Struck, P.Eng Chief Executive Officer Premium Exploration, Inc.P:(604) 682-0243F: (604) 682-2499Email: wstruck@premiumexploration.comChristine Kopr Corporate Communications Premium Exploration, Inc.P: (604)682-0243F: (604) 682-2499Email: ckopr@premiumexploration.com

Thispress release contains certain "Forward-LookingStatements" within themeaning of Section 21E of the United StatesSecurity Exchange Act of1934, and involves a number of risks and uncertainties. Importantfactors that could cause actual results todiffer materially from theCompany's expectations are disclosed in the Company's documents filedfrom time to time with the TSX Venture Exchange and the British ColumbiaSecurities Commission. All statements, other than of historical fact,included herein areforward-looking statements that involve variousrisks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statementswillprove to be accurate, and actual results and future events coulddiffer materially from those anticipated in such statements. Neither theTSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that termisdefined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange)accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Copyright (c) 2009 Thenewswire.ca - All rights reserved.

Source: TheNewsWire.ca (July 9, 2009 - 2:13 PM EDT)

News by QuoteMedia