Last updated 3 March 2006

Introduction and History

Tertiary Minerals plc ("the Company") aims to provide capital growth for shareholders through the costs effective exploration and development of mineral deposits.

The Group is involved in exploration and development of tantalum, gold and base metal, projects.

The Group has interests in a number of mineral exploration projects in Saudi Arabia, Finland and Sweden including projects at the preliminary economic feasibility stage, projects at the drilling stage and grass roots projects.

The Company was formed in August 1999 and became the holding company for Tertiary Gold Limited in September 1999 when all of the shareholders of Tertiary Gold exchanged their shares in that company for shares in Tertiary Minerals.

Tertiary Gold was formed in September 1995 and is named after the "Tertiary" geological time period. Prior to the share exchange Tertiary Gold financed its activities principally through two private equity seed capital fundraisings. It conducts operations in Sweden through a Swedish branch called "Svensk filial till Tertiary Gold Limited, United Kingdom".

Following the acquisition of Tertiary Gold the Company was admitted to trading on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange Limited ("AIM") on 18 November 1999. It has established its corporate office in Macclesfield, Cheshire.

Strategy and Prospects

The Directors policy is to maintain a portfolio of grass roots to advanced exploration projects such that the Company has, as far as is possible, mature drill-stage projects at all times and thus continuing exposure to the opportunity for the discovery of commercial ore-bodies.

The portfolio includes world-class targets for gold, copper and nickel in politically stable Scandinavia and development projects for tantalum in Finland and Saudi Arabia.

Tantalum has shown strong demand and price growth over the past ten years due to its predominant use in various electronic and other "high-tech" applications. Whilst demand for tantalum was weak from 2000-2003, due to a weak electronics sector, growth has now returned to the tantalum market and the Company believes that the market for these metals will continue to grow at above average rates in future.

The Company has set out a two-fold strategy for involvement in the tantalum business. The Company is looking to develop its Rosendal project in Finland, when tantalum prices allow. At the same time, in response to the exceptional growth in the tantalum market over the past 10 years, we have been advancing development of the world-class Ghurayyah tantalum deposit in Saudi Arabia which is capable of supplying large amounts of tantalum to the market within a 3-5 year time horizon.

This strategy has progressed substantially with the completion of preliminary metallurgical testwork and economic scoping studies on the Rosendal tantalum project and a positive scoping study for development of the Ghurayyah deposit. Preliminary feasibility studies for development of Ghurayyah project have now started following agreement with a Saudi consortium for US$7million of funding for completion of bankable feasibility studies.

The Group will consider entering into joint venture or farm-in agreements with other mineral companies on its projects where this would allow it to accelerate exploration and/or development of a project beyond the financial resources available to it, or in order to explore further its projects at minimal cost to the Group.