Exploration and Development Update

24 October 2007
AIM / PLUS Markets: AAU

                 EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT UPDATE

Ariana  Resources  plc   ("Ariana"  or  "the   Company"),  the   gold
exploration company  focused  on  Turkey, announces  that  3,512m  of
Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling has been completed at its  advanced
projects in western Turkey.   Other positive developments,  primarily
within the Sindirgi Project, are  focused on ensuring the Company  is
fully prepared for its scoping study.

Highlights

*          Drilling completed at the Ivrindi Project
*          Drilling completed on Arzu South, Vein 2 and Banu at the
  Kiziltepe prospect
*          Bulk-sampling for further metallurgical testwork completed
*          New metallurgical study to commence
*          New forestry permits granted for Kiziltepe and Karakavak
  prospects

Drilling Programme

To date 3,512m  of drilling  has been  completed on  the Ivrindi  and
Sindirgi projects in Western Turkey, for a total of 37 holes.   Assay
results are being received and will be announced once they have  been
collated.   A multi-purpose  drill-rig has  been requested  from  our
drilling contractors so that drilling can be carried out through  the
winter, and at more  awkward locations.  The  new rig will also  have
the flexibility to drill both diamond and RC holes, as appropriate.
The drilling programme has been halted temporarily and will  commence
again in December.

Bulk Sampling

Bulk-sampling of 1,000 tonnes of material from the Arzu vein has been
completed, exposing approximately  100m of vein  to a depth  of 2m.
This work was conducted in accordance with the Turkish mining law and
has provided useful mining cost  information for our scoping study.
The opening  of this  trial pit  has confirmed  the geological  model
constructed earlier  in  the  year by  SRK  Consulting  and  provides
further confidence  in the  basis of  the Mineral  Resource  Estimate
announced in May 2007.  The mineralised material mined from the trial
pit has been stockpiled on site for use in laboratory and  full-scale
metallurgical tests.

Metallurgical Testwork

A bulk-sample of  200-300 kg  of mineralised material  from the  Arzu
vein is  being sent  to  a specialised  laboratory in  Australia  for
metallurgical testwork.   This testwork will  be undertaken by  Gekko
Systems Pty.  Ltd., Victoria,  to determine  the amenability  of  the
mineralisation to  gravity  pre-concentration.    This  will  provide
important additional data for our  scoping study and, if  successful,
may lead to a full mineral processing plant design.

Forestry Permits

The Company  has  been  granted  two new  forestry  permits  for  the
Kiziltepe prospect and one permit  for the Karakavak prospect by  the
Department of  the  Environment  and  Forestry.    This  will  enable
additional drilling  at several  new  sites on  veins that  have  not
previously been drill-tested at the Kiziltepe prospect.  It will also
enable the first drill-testing of  the Karakavak prospect, which  has
shown encouraging grades on surface of  up to 10.40g/t Au and  409g/t
Ag.  The addition of this prospect to the drilling programme is ahead
of schedule and it is likely  that Karakavak will be drilled as  part
of the current (2007) drilling programme.

Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented:

"We are very pleased with the progress of the drilling at  Kiziltepe,
which has advanced  faster than expected.   This has  allowed us  the
opportunity to call  a temporary halt  to drilling while  we wait  to
receive and evaluate assay results, and also enables us to switch  to
a more appropriate drill rig before winter.

"We will update shareholders in detail on the new drilling results in
a month's time,  but can  confirm that  the initial  results for  the
northern part of Arzu South  are consistent with those reported  last
year.   Also,  confidence  in the  geological  model  developed  from
previous drilling has increased following the trial mining of part of
the Arzu vein.

"We expect to expand our  drilling programme beyond the 6,000m  plan,
with the intention  of bringing  more of the  existing resource  into
indicated JORC category and increasing  the total resource.  The  new
mineral resource  estimate will  be conducted  in parallel  with  our
scoping study for which we are making the necessary preparations."


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    |                    |
|----------------------------------+--------------------|
|                                  |                    |
|----------------------------------+--------------------|
| City Capital Corporation Limited | Tel: [phone] |
|----------------------------------+--------------------|
| Charles Dampney                  |                    |
|----------------------------------+--------------------|
|                                  |                    |
|----------------------------------+--------------------|
| King & Shaxson Capital Limited   | Tel: [phone] |
|----------------------------------+--------------------|
| Nick Bealer                      |                    |
+-------------------------------------------------------+


Editors' note:

Dr Kerim Sener, BSc (Hons), MSc, PhD, is Ariana's Managing  Director.
A graduate of the University of Southampton in Geology, he also holds
a Master's degree from the  Royal School of Mines (Imperial  College,
London) in Mineral Exploration and a doctorate from the University of
Western Australia. He is a Fellow of The Geological Society of London
and has  worked in  geological research  and mineral  consultancy  in
Africa  and  Australia.  He  has  read  and  approved  the  technical
disclosure in this regulatory announcement.

About Ariana Resources

Ariana is a dynamic exploration company focused on the discovery  and
development  of  epithermal  gold-silver  and  porphyry   copper-gold
deposits  with  multi-million  ounce  potential  within  the  Tethyan
metallogenic belt  of  Turkey.    The  Company  has  a  portfolio  of
prospective licences covering 1,820km2, selected on the basis of  its
advanced in-house remote sensing database.

The Company's flagship  asset is  the 235km2  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.

City Capital Corporation Limited and  King & Shaxson Capital  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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