Completion of JV

12 May 2008
AIM / PLUS Markets: AAU
 
 
          JOINT VENTURE COMPLETED WITH EUROPEAN GOLDFIELDS,
         SUBSCRIPTION, ISSUE OF EQUITY AND BOARD APPOINTMENT
 
Further to the announcement made  on 21 April 2008, Ariana  Resources
plc ("Ariana" or "the Company"), the gold exploration and development
company focused  on Turkey,  is pleased  to announce  that the  Joint
Venture  ("JV")   with   European   Goldfields   Limited   ("European
Goldfields") (TSX / AIM:  EGU) has been  completed.  The transfer  of
Ariana's properties has been confirmed by the General Directorate  of
Mining Affairs in Turkey.  
 
Accordingly:
 

  * Under a private placing, 18,571,016 new ordinary shares of 1p
    each (the "Shares") have been issued to European Goldfields at a
    price of 5p per Share to raise £928,550.80. 

 

  * European Goldfields will hold 20% of the Company's issued share
    capital, following the issue of 3,000,000 Shares to Odyssey
    Resources Limited, pursuant to the acquisition of the Tavsan
    Project.

 

  * David John Richard Reading, 52, Chief Executive of European
    Goldfields, will be appointed to the Board of Ariana with
    immediate effect.  There are no other matters under paragraph (g)
    of Schedule 2 of the AIM Rules for Companies to be disclosed.

 
Application will be made for the  Shares, which will rank pari  passu
with all existing ordinary shares, to be admitted to trading on AIM.
 
Contacts:
 

Ariana Resources plc             Tel: [phone]
Michael Spriggs, Chairman         
Kerim Sener, Managing Director    
                                  
Beaumont Cornish Limited         Tel: [phone]
Roland Cornish                    
                                  
Bankside Consultants             Tel: [phone]
Michael Padley / Louise Davis     
                                  
Loeb Aron & Company Ltd          Tel: [phone]
Peter Freeman / Frank Lucas       
                                  
City Capital Corporation Limited Tel: [phone]
Charles Dampney                   
                                  

Editors' note:
 
About Ariana Resources
 
Ariana  is  an  exploration   and  development  company  focused   on
epithermal gold-silver and porphyry copper-gold deposits in  Turkey. 
The Company is exploring a portfolio of prospective licences selected
on the basis of its in-house remote-sensing database.
 
The Company's  flagship asset  is the  Sindirgi Gold  Project,  which
targets a series of prospects, within a prolific mineralised district
in western  Turkey.   The  project hosts  over  45km  of  gold-silver
bearing epithermal  quartz veins.   This project  is presently  being
assessed as to its economic merits. 
 
Loeb Aron &  Company Ltd.  and City Capital  Corporation Limited  are
joint brokers  to the  Company and  Beaumont Cornish  Limited is  the
Company's nominated adviser.
 
For further  information  on Ariana  you  are invited  to  visit  the
Company's website at www.arianaresources.com.
 
Ends

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