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To: marcos who wrote (1346)	9/12/2002 12:25:38 PM
From: russet	Respond to of 5423

Van Sun says mayor unimpressed with Crystallex promises Crystallex International Corp KRY Shares issued 81,344,316 Sep 11 close $3.35 Thu 12 Sept 2002 In the News The Vancouver Sun reports in its Thursday edition that a high-ranking municipal official in Bolivar state has denounced the selection of Crystallex International by Venezuelan mining authorities to develop Las Cristinas. The Sun's David Baines writes that Carlos Chancellor, mayor of Sifontes, says the company has a negative track record in the area and points to the nearby Albino I concession, where Crystallex has failed to deliver after years of development promises. Mr. Chancellor says it is "evident that Crystallex has been developing its activities at a minimum in all its properties. ... Crystallex has not shown a willingness to support the communities." Last week's near detail-free statement that Crystallex would develop a mine at Cristinas was a shock because the government has maintained the project would only be done by a major. Last year, Crystallex produced 109,000 ounces; net income was $66,394. The Venezuelan supreme court ruled in 1998 that Crystallex is not an interested party regarding title to Cristinas. Earlier this year, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez decreed ownership to the state. Neither event stopped the company from recording the asset on its books at full costs. (c) Copyright 2002 Canjex Publishing Ltd. stockwatch.com

To: marcos who wrote (1346)	9/12/2002 12:40:31 PM
From: 4figureau	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5423

I have watched John change his thinking over the last 2 years. He has done a serious amount of research in this saga: >>In mining, no deposit is worth much unless you have a lawsuit, so I am not surprised about the huffing and puffing.<< --John Ing Winning the Gold Interview by Robert Graham Vancouver based Crystallex International has won the dispute over the Las Cristinas gold mine in Venezuela, one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Latin America. It's a classic David versus Goliath story says Maison Placements Canada President John Ing Transcript IC: It’s been a long, drawn-out scrap, but a five-year legal battle has ended with Vancouver’s Crystallex International winning the right to develop the Las Cristinas gold property in Venezuela. And make no mistake about it, this is a major victory for the company. The property is one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Latin America. Joining us for some insight is John Ing, from Maison Placements in Toronto. John, the CEO of Crystallex is calling this decision historic for both the company and its shareholders and that’s not an understatement at all, is it? Ing: Well, it’s been a classic David versus Goliath. This Crystallex has fought off the scepticism of the street, Placer Dome, even some members of the Venezuelan government in order to get this project. IC: How much gold is in the ground down there? Ing: Well, there’s a resource of about 12 million ounces. Placer Dome had the property at one time, but this was under a different gold price and they were looking at a much bigger capital cost. They had spent something in the order of 120 million dollars. So they wrote that down and walked away from the project. IC: Do you think that they are kicking themselves a little bit right now when they look at the current gold price and what is down there? Ing: Well, Placer Dome has walked away from other projects such as Omai, but this is one of the few undeveloped mega that is more than ten million ounce of resource projects, not only Latin America but around the world. So the big sticky point has been the ownership that is the rights to the deposit. The Venezuelan government, when Placer walked away, took back the rights so to speak and the decision, the historic decision was granted Crystallex on Friday night. So there still is a couple more weeks of an agreement to sign, but my understanding is that all the major issues have been resolved. IC: Now, of course, there is a company in Vancouver that may disagree with you, Vannessa Ventures. Ing: Yes. Vannessa “bought” the rights to the deposit from Placer Dome in a deal whereby Placer Dome gave it what rights it thought it had to the deposit to Vannessa for the grand sum of $50. So they have been huffing and puffing and the lawyers have been involved. In mining, no deposit is worth much unless you have a lawsuit. So I am not surprised about the huffing and puffing. But the fact that CVG, which is the crown corporation for the Venezuelan government, has been granting mining concessions in the past and granted this one and the fact that the government is behind it suggests to me that Crystallex has won the deposit and the likelihood of lawsuits, well, that’s part of normal. But I think that the Venezuelan government and Crystallex have a development plan and my understanding is that in a couple of years, they are projecting this deposit to produce 250,000 ounces at a 10,000-tonne per day facility. So the sooner they can get started, the better for everybody. IC: Why did Crystallex win this in the end, do you think? Ing: Well, I think they’re very tenacious. I think that rather than fight it out in the press, I think they have many frequent flyer points down to Venezuela. They have recruited some top-notch lawyers. Bob Fung, the Chairman of Crystallex, has been down there. And I think the fact that they already have mines in Venezuela went a great way to show the Venezuelan government that a) they had the facilities there where they show that they could mine; but b) is I think that Mr. Fung’s connections and network to show how he financed a lot of his operations gave the Venezuelans a lot of confidence that he could bring this off. investorcanada.com