Fortuna Announces Drill Results From Soledad and Silvia Veins at the Caylloma Mine, Peru: Financial News

Fortuna Announces Drill Results From Soledad and Silvia Veins at the Caylloma Mine, Peru
Tuesday August 19, 2008 9:00 am ET

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(MARKET WIRE)--Aug 19, 2008 -- Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. (CDNX:FVI.V - News)(BVL: FVI) is pleased to announce the results from drilling of the Soledad and Silvia veins located in the northeastern portion of the Caylloma District, Arequipa, Peru. The Soledad and Silvia veins are located in proximity to and are sub-parallel to the San Cristobal and Santa Cata veins which were extensively mined for high grade silver ores from the 16th to 20th centuries.

Four drill holes totaling 827.9 meters have been completed to-date from underground drill stations. Highlights of the results include:

- Drill hole STCM000808 intersected 1937 g/t Ag and 1.89 g/t Au over a true thickness of 1.2 meters from 117.1 m.

- Drill hole STCM000507 intersected 548 g/t Ag and 1.51 g/t Au over a true thickness of 1.3 meters from 116.5 m.

Length-weighted assay averages for the drill holes are summarized in the table below. True thicknesses are estimated to be equal to the drill interval as all drill holes were drilled perpendicular to the mineralized structures.

 

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              From      To  Int     Ag     Au     Pb    Zn    Cu
Hole Id.        (m)     (m)  (m)  (g/t)  (g/t)    (%)   (%)   (%)   Vein
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STCM000507   116.5   117.8  1.3    548    1.51  0.68  2.04  0.21    Soledad
             256.6   257.2  0.6    141    0.17  4.85  5.40  1.01    Silvia
STCM000608    77.2    77.7  0.5    264    0.78  0.41  1.07  0.30    Soledad
             139.3   142.1  2.8    142    0.12  3.16  3.47  0.63    Silvia
STCM000708    86.3    88.0  1.7    159    0.47  0.41  1.39  0.09    Soledad
             140.8   143.7  2.9    167    0.13  3.94  3.20  1.56    Silvia
STCM000808   117.1   118.3  1.2   1937    1.89  0.56  1.21  0.08    Soledad
             174.7   175.5  0.8    493    0.58  1.06  2.48  0.25    Silvia
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The Company is currently extending underground access to the Soledad and Silvia veins to further evaluate the mineralization and to delineate resources and reserves. The underground development program for these veins is scheduled to be concluded this year.

Background

The silver and base metal-rich Caylloma district is located in the Tertiary volcanic belt of southern Peru. Intermediate-sulfidation epithermal mineralization is present in vein systems hosted by andesitic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks overlying a Jurassic-age sedimentary basement. The Caylloma Mine was purchased by Fortuna Silver in 2005 and returned to production in October of 2006. Fortuna currently operates the 100% owned Caylloma Pb-Zn-Ag Mine at a nominal rate of 900 to 1000 tpd with production sourced primarily from the Animas Vein.

Fortuna holds exploration and mining rights to concessions covering approximately 13,800 hectares in the Caylloma area. Exploration activities include testing of high grade silver and base metal targets within the Caylloma District and reconnaissance evaluation of surrounding properties to identify opportunities warranting more advanced exploration and development.

Quality Assurance & Quality Control

Following detailed geological and geotechnical logging, drill core samples are split on-site by diamond saw. One half of the core is submitted to the ALS Chemex sample preparation facility in Lima, Peru. The remaining half core is retained on-site for verification and reference purposes. Following preparation, the samples are assayed for gold and silver by standard fire assay methods and for base metals by atomic absorption methods utilizing an aqua regia digestion. Multi-element analyses are also completed for each sample by ICP methods. The QA-QC program at Caylloma includes the blind insertion of certified reference standards at a frequency of approximately 1 per 15 normal samples and the insertion of assay blanks at a frequency of approximately 1 per 15 normal samples. Drill results reported in this news release correspond to NQ- and BQ-diameter core.

Qualified Person

Mr. Gregory Smith, P.Geo., is the Company's Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the accuracy of the technical information in this news release.

Fortuna Silver

Fortuna is a growth oriented, silver and base metal producer focused on mining opportunities in Latin America. Principal assets include the Caylloma Silver Mine in southern Peru and the San Jose Silver-Gold Project in Mexico. The Company is aggressively pursuing additional acquisition opportunities. For more information, please visit our website at www.fortunasilver.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Jorge Alberto Ganoza Durant, President, CEO and Director

Fortuna Silver Mines Inc.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not take responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.