New Epithermal Gold Mineralisation - Northern Afar

Stratex International Plc / Index: AIM / Epic: STI / Sector: Mining

28 February 2011

Stratex International plc ('Stratex' or 'the Company')

Discovers Additional New Epithermal Gold Mineralisation in Northern Afar

Stratex International plc is pleased to announce the discovery of epithermal gold mineralisation at the newly acquired 299 sq km Blackrock Exclusive Exploration Licence ('EEL') in the northern Afar region of Ethiopia.

Highlights

·; Definition at Blackrock expands potential size of epithermal gold district - located 260 km north of Megenta

o Gold mineralisation identified in outcropping chalcedonic silica veins and hydrothermal breccias grading up to 2.3 g/t gold ('Au')

o Gold bearing silica ribs up to 6 metres wide and exposed over 600 metres

o Mineralisation identified from four prospects covering 15.9 km in distance

·; Further exploration work to commence in March 2011 with the aim of fast-tracking prospects through to drill-ready status before end 2011

David Hall, Executive Director, commented, "This newly discovered occurrence of low-sulphidation epithermal-type mineralisation at Blackrock is hot on the heels of our recent discovery of Asal in Djibouti, in addition to the Megenta and Mille prospects in Ethiopia. Together they highlight the ever expanding area of interest within the Afar district and demonstrate the potential of what we believe to be a new metallogenic province. We continue to look for further discoveries and our teams on the ground are field-checking numerous targets.

"Our 3,000 metre drill programme at Megenta is due to commence in April 2011, marking the first system to be drill tested, and we look forward to advancing further targets towards drill definition."

Further Information

The Blackrock EEL covers an area of 299 sq km within northern Afar and is located close to the small town of Dallol. Within the licence area, four vein exposures hosting low-sulphidation mineralisation have been identified over a distance of 15.9 km, hosted within structures associated with Red Sea-parallel half-graben faults.

Mineralisation in the most southern prospect comprises veins of chalcedonic silica, hydrothermal breccias and calcite replaced by silica. Selective rock chip samples yielded values of 1.20, 1.21 and 0.66 g/t Au from a vein exposed over a strike length of approximately 600 metres. Total vein widths range along strike from a minimum of 1 metre to a maximum width of greater than 6 metres, with a further gold-bearing silicified halo surrounding the vein. Vertical continuity of the vein has been observed over 70 metres, from the top of the topographically prominent ribs to exposures in the valley floor. Lateral and vertical continuity of veins indicates potential for the licence to host mineralisation over a significant area.

The setting of the Blackrock mineralisation is very similar to Megenta, which is 260 km to the south. Mineralisation from the Discovery Outcrop, centrally located within the four prospects, yielded 2.3 g/t Au from a grab sample of silicified sediment. The topographically prominent ribs contain colloform chalcedonic silica and also abundant bladed calcite that has been replaced by silica, a feature that is very common throughout the prospects on the Blackrock licence area. Much of the calcite replaced by silica exhibits a pre-replacement bladed texture that often reflects boiling of the fluid, a phenomenon that is commonly associated with the precipitation of very high 'bonanza' concentrations of gold.

Exploration work at the Blackrock licence area will commence in March 2011 with detailed geological mapping of the silica ribs, combined with channel-chip sampling and further licence-wide exploration. Given the excellent exposure throughout the licence area it is expected that the Blackrock prospects will be a key focus for further exploration during 2011.

Afar Epithermal Gold District

Stratex's total land package in the Afar region, including Blackrock, now stands at 3,853 sq km. The Company also has 138 sq km covering an epithermal target at Gademsa in the Main Ethiopian Rift.

For more information on the Company's Blackrock project, please see http://www.stratexinternational.com/operations/exploration/ethiopia-djibouti/blackrock.aspx 

East Africa Licences

Current licence areas as advised by the Ethiopian Ministry of Mines are revised as follows:

Sampling, assaying, and QA/QC

Stratex's sampling of outcropping rocks conforms to industry-wide good practice, with chain of custody being observed for all samples. Analysis is undertaken by ALS Chemex at its laboratories in Johannesburg, South Africa and the Company maintains QA/QC on all analytical work via the use of certified reference materials, field duplicates, and blank samples in addition to monitoring of internal laboratory check-analyses.

Executive Director David J. Hall, Fellow SEG and EuroGeol is a Competent Person as defined by various international instruments and takes responsibility for the release of this information.

** ENDS * *

For further information please visit www.stratexinternational.com, email [email protected], or contact:

Notes to editors:

Stratex International Plc is an AIM-quoted exploration and development company focussing on gold and base metal opportunities in Turkey, Ethiopia and Djibouti.

Turkey Portfolio

In Turkey, Stratex's prime objective is to move into gold production through its partnership with its Turkish partner NTF, with initial production targeted at its Inlice project by the first quarter of 2012 and at Altıntepe by early 2013. The Company also remains focussed on discovering and developing new projects through low-cost exploration, adding maximum value prior to optioning/joint venturing or selling on to a dedicated mining company.

·; Total resources stand at 1.17 million oz of gold (combined oxide and sulphide gold) and approximately 3.2 million oz of silver

·; Partnership with NTF, a technically capable and well-financed Turkish company, to rapidly develop the 542,318 oz oxide gold resources present at the Inlice and Altıntepe projects

·; An option/joint venture agreement with Centerra Exploration B.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of Centerra Gold Inc., to explore and develop the Öksüt project, a high-sulphidation gold discovery located in Central Anatolia

·; An option/joint venture agreement over the Hasancelebi project, a high-sulphidation gold project in central Turkey with Teck Madencilik Sanayi Ticaret A.S., a Turkish subsidiary of Teck Resources Limited of Canada, a major shareholder in Stratex

·; An option/joint venture agreement with Turkish company Aydeniz Group to fast-track drilling at the Muratdere copper-gold porphyry project in western Turkey

Stratex East Africa Ltd ('SEA') - Ethiopia and Djibouti Portfolio

·; 5.45% shareholding in PLUS-quoted exploration company Sheba Exploration (UK) plc ('Sheba')

·; A joint venture with Sheba to (i) earn-in to an initial 60% of the prospective 29 sq km Shehagne gold project in Ethiopia, and (ii) explore targets in northern Ethiopia on a 70:30 joint venture basis

·; Berahale and Gademsa EELs cover a combined area of 1,244 sq km in northern and central Ethiopia respectively and are prospective for gold and base metals

·; 3,853 sq km land position over new epithermal gold discovery and multiple related gold targets in the Afar Depression of eastern Ethiopia and Djibouti, collectively named as the Afar Depression Project

·; Stratex International has signed a binding Heads of Agreement with Thani Ashanti, an AngloGold Ashanti Limited joint venture company, to fast-track development of the Afar prospects. Thani Ashanti can earn 51% of the 5 EELs in Ethiopia and 6 EELs in Djibouti (collectively the 'Afar Joint Venture') by spending US$3 million on exploration and development over two years