SELSF (U.S. Clearing Symbol)

News Release 2008-04

January 31, 2008

NEWS RELEASE

TESORO GOLD PROJECT , PERU -
Bulk Sample Batches Return Grades of 0.79 oz/t, 0.99 oz/t and 0.34 oz/t Gold

Lori McClenahan, President of St. Elias Mines Ltd. (the “Company”), is pleased to announce bulk sample and exploration results from the Company’s ongoing development program at the Tesoro Gold Project (the “Property”) located in southwestern Peru ..

Bulk Samples

A total of 71 tonnes of development material has been processed at the milling facility of D ynacor Mines Incorporated located immediately to the north of the Property. Included in this material is 26 tonnes grading 0.79 oz./t gold and 31 tonnes grading 0.99 oz./t gold from the C-1 Vein at Zona Canchete and 14 tonnes grading 0.34 oz./t gold from the A-4 Vein System at Zona Central.

To date, a total of 332 tonnes of bulk sample material averaging 0.97 oz/t gold has been extracted from ongoing underground exploration development at the C-1 Vein. In addition, a total of 188 tonnes of bulk sample material averaging 0.75 oz./t gold has been extracted from the A-4 Vein System.

Exploration

At Zona Canchete, detailed sampling has been completed on the C-3 and C-4 Veins, which are parallel to the C-1 Vein and located respectively 60 metres and 30 metres to the north of it.

At the C-3 Vein, 19 channel samples were collected across a strike length of 70 metres from shallow pits and trenches. The vein remains open to the east and west. Although the C-3 Vein is narrow at surface (average 8cm), grades obtained were extremely encouraging, ranging from 4g/t to 268g/t gold (0.12 oz/t to 7.82 oz/t) with an average grade of 1.2 oz/t gold. These grades are superior to grades obtained from detailed surface sampling of the C-1 Vein completed prior to the initiation of underground operations.

At the C-4 Vein, 16 channel samples were collected across a strike length of 120 metres from shallow pits and trenches. The vein remains open to the east and west. The C-4 Vein is somewhat narrower than the C-3 Vein and has grades ranging from 0.36g/t to 55.3g/t gold (0.01 oz/t to 1.61 oz/t), with an average grade of approximately 0.5 oz/t gold.

At Zona Central, three new trenches have intersected the A-1 Vein, extending its strike length from 70 metres to 90 metres. Grades in the new trenches are 0.12 oz/t, 0.62 oz/t and 0.70 oz/t gold. To date, 18 channel samples collected from the A-1 Vein have returned an average grade of 0.55 oz/t gold across widths of 10cm to 40cm.

Assays and check assays of all samples, including bulk samples, are analyzed by fire assay by ALS Chemex SA laboratory (an ISO certified 9002 facility) in Lima , Peru ..

All technical work is being supervised by, and the contents of this news release have been verified by, John Brophy, P.Geo, a Canadian geologist residing in Peru, who is a “qualified person” as defined in National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

The Tesoro Gold Project is 100% owned by the Company with no underlying royalties. The Project is located within the prolific 300km x 30km Nazca-Ocoño gold belt paralleling the Pacific coast of southwestern Peru , within which there are more than 70 known gold deposits comprising narrow but generally high-grade auriferous quartz veins. Although the veins are narrow, typically <1.0 metres wide, the mineralized structures tend to extend along strike for kilometres and to depths of up to 1,000 metres.

For additional information on St. Elias and its projects, please visit us at www.steliasmines.com or call 1-888-895-55221-888-895-5522 (toll free US and Canada ).

ST. ELIAS MINES LTD.

(signed “Lori McClenahan”)

Lori McClenahan,

President

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

This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding the ongoing and upcoming exploration work and expected geometry of geological formations and structures. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.