Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc.

COMPANY DATA | INTRODUCTION | PROJECTS IN HAND | MANAGEMENT | NEWS UPDATE
CHINESE

COMPANY DATA

INTRODUCTION

Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. is a junior mining and exploration company with interests in projects in Canada and South Africa. In Canada the Company holds a 50% interest in the near-surface gold bearing oxide resources on the Holdsworth Project near Wawa. The Company can earn a 50% interest in Kwagga Gold (Pty) Ltd., a subsidiary of AfriOre Ltd. that holds the rights to the FSC Project in South Africa. The project lies to the south and adjacent to the Witwatersrand Gold basin. This interest forms the most significant holding for the Company and was the reason for the creation of Wits Basin.

PROJECTS IN HAND

(1) FSC Witwatersrand Project, South Africa

Wits Basin's main interest is an option on the FSC Project in South Africa. The project is held by AfriOre Ltd. Recently AfriOre entered into an agreement with Hawk Precious Minerals Inc. whereby Hawk has the right to acquire up to a 50% interest in AfriOre's South African subsidiary Kwagga that holds the mineral rights to the FSC project properties. Hawk may earn 35% by making advances totaling US$2.1 million for exploration, development and property maintenance costs. These funds are to be employed before mid 2006 by AfriOre as the operator. Hawk can earn a further 15% by advancing an additional US$1.4 million to AfriOre's subsidiary to cover continued exploration and development on the project. Hawk has assigned these option rights to Wits Basin for an approximate 20% stake in Wits Basin. To obtain these rights the Wits Basin must also meet the payment schedule as defined in the AfriOre-Hawk agreement.

AfriOre holds the exclusive prospecting rights to 107,000 ha south of the Witwatersrand goldfield region of South Africa. The Witwatersrand goldfield is the world's largest gold producer and over the past 115 years, 120 mines have extracted approximately 1.55 billion ounces of gold, close to one third of all the gold that has ever been mined, from a cumulative 350 km strike length of the 430 km active basin margin arc. AfriOre's consultants, two leading Witwatersrand academics, have developed a model that identified areas that may have preserved extensions of the Witwatersrand goldfield under cover rocks to the south and located at accessible depths. This area is now referred to as the FSC project and forms the target of this exploration project. AfriOre's property covers a cumulative 140 km of priority targets prospective for mineralized Witwatersrand type rocks.

AfriOre's exploration program includes a full review of all the available information for the FSC Basin. Recently 28,000 km of aeromagnetic surveys were completed with the information being reviewed to develop targets for a drilling program to start in September 2003. This drilling program will focus on the priority targets of economically accessible Witwatersrand rocks at depths between 1,100 and 1,500 m and thus drilling of individual holes is expected to take approximately two months to reach these depths. If the drilling intersects the target units the drilling program would be accelerated with the deployment of additional rigs.

The project provides a target with high risks and potentially high rewards and will require a long-term approach to the exploration program. In order to advance this project and share the risks AfriOre is partnering with Wits Basin. In addition to this, and in line with South Africa's new mineral policy, AfriOre is in discussions with a Black Empowerment Group to become equity partners in the FSC Project and its development. Should the empowerment partners participate the current plan sees Wits Basin holding 36% of the FSC Project once all agreements are finalized.

(2) Holdsworth Project, Wawa, Ontario

Wits Basin received the 50% rights to oxidized surface deposits of the Holdsworth Projects as part of the agreement between Hawk Precious Minerals and Wits Basin. The Holdsworth property consists of 19 single unit claims totaling approximately 308 ha. Located in the Wawa area near the village of Hawk Junction, Ontario. Access to the property is by paved highway and logging roads. The ACR railway passes within a kilometer of the property and includes a spur line that terminates on the claim group.

Gold mineralization is hosted within a black, granular oxide zone that overlies at least two massive pyrite zones. The oxide material is present to at least 8 meters (25 ft.) in depth and contains highly elevated gold values ranging from trace to 15.5 g/t (0.453 oz/t). In the past few years systematic sampling on portions of the East Zone using a backhoe outlined oxide material grading 3.7 g/t over an average width of 2.9 m (0.108 oz/t over 9.5 ft.). The material is weakly consolidated and can be easily excavated illustrating the potential for low mining costs.

The East Zone has a minimum strike length of 850 m (2,800 ft.). The West Zone, a second massive pyrite lenses with a minimum 450 m strike length contains similar gold mineralization and grades as the East Zone. Geophysical surveys have outlined at least five additional targets that may be massive pyrite units having responses similar to the Holdsworth Pyrite Prospect. Preliminary sampling and mapping indicates a measured resource of some 15,800 t at 3.6 g/t and an inferred resource of 38,900 t at 2.5 g/t. Mapping indicates the potential for an additional 185,000 t in other oxide zones on the property. Oxide material forwarded to an area mill for testing returned 98.2% recovery in a 48-hour cyanide leach test. These oxide zones have the potential to provide Wits Basin with a cash flow generating operation with relatively low operating costs and thus high margins. The Company estimates the measure and inferred resources have an in situ value in excess of C$2.6 million at today's gold price of C$520/oz. Wits Basin is actively soliciting a joint venture mining contractor partner to assess and bulk sample the Oxide Zone.

MANAGEMENT

The management of Wits Basin includes business and technical professionals with over 30 years of experience in the mining business in Canada, South Africa and internationally. The management team includes:

H. Vance White, President & CEO, Director
Mr. White is a businessman who has been involved in the natural resource industry for over 30 years. Currently he is also president of Hawk Precious Minerals, a Canadian junior resource company. From 1993 to 1995 Mr. White was president of AfriOre Limited, Wits Basin's partner in this project. From 1985 to 1995 he was President of Mid-North Engineering Services, a company providing services and financing to the junior mining sector. Prior to 1985 Mr. White was Chairman and/or President of the Dickenson Mines Group of Companies. Mr. White has been associated and provided services to numerous other junior mining companies and is currently a director of several of these.

Mark D. Dacko, Chief Financial Officer, Director
Mr. Dacko became a director of Wits Basin Precious Minerals in June 2003 and has served as its Chief Financial Officer and Secretary since March 2003, and its Controller since February 2001. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Dacko was Controller and Secretary at PopMail.com Inc. from January 1999 to January 2001. From November 1995 to December 1998, Mr. Dacko was Controller and Secretary at Woodroast Systems, Inc.

Walter Brooks, Director
Mr. Brooks is Vice-President and a Director of Hawk Precious Minerals Inc. Mr. Brooks also serves as Director of Rodinia Minerals Inc., his principal occupation of the past five years. Mr. Brooks has also held positions in the investment industry and has been associated with a number of junior natural resource companies.

Michael Pickens, Director
Mr. Pickens, a geologist, has been the President of Geoex Limited since 1976, an integrated mining and exploration company engaged in all facets of mineral exploration whose focus changed in the early 1990's to providing fairness opinions, qualifying reports and evaluations. From 1986 until 1992 he was a partner, mining analyst, corporate financier and founding member of Yorkton's Natural Resource Group. He was responsible for several new issues at Yorkton including Bema Gold, Sikamen Resources, Southern Era and Wheaton River. Prior to Yorkton, he worked with Midland Doherty as a mining analyst and in corporate finance for 6 years. Mr. Pickens is currently a director of several Canadian natural resource companies.

Norman Lowenthal, Director
Mr. Lowenthal is a South African businessman and is Vice-Chairman of the Taylor Companies, a leading private bank located in Washington and Chairman of SSC Mandarin Financial Services based in Hong Kong. Mr. Lowenthal was Chairman of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange from 1997 to 2000 and currently sits as a member of their Securities Regulation Panel. He was chairman for several public gold and diamond mining companies during the 1990's and has been actively involved in the diamond industry since 1960 assisting in the discovery of several major diamonds finds in South Africa.

NEWS UPDATE

On August 03, 2004, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced that it has completed its sale of its wholly owned subsidiary of Brazmin Ltda., a limited liability company located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Wits Basin originally acquired Brazmin on February 6, 2004, in a transaction (the "Quota Agreement") with Argyle Securities Limited, a corporation formed under the laws of Saint Vincent.

On March 31, 2004, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced further progress in the drilling of the first drill hole in the FSC gold project in South Africa as reported by the Operator, AfriOre Limited. The drill hole is at a depth of 2,505 metres, and will continue drilling in order to intersect the remaining critical stratigraphic markers anticipated on this target. The intention is to identify those parts of the basin where mineralized reefs could be preserved at depths of between 1,000 and 1,500 metres below surface. The drilling has highlighted a number of additional priority targets, two of which have been selected for drilling. Accordingly, it is intended to drill the next two drill holes simultaneously and the drilling contractors, CM Skanska, have been requested to prepare a second rig for deployment to the project area.

On March 03, 2004, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced that it has been advised by the FSC Project operator AfriOre that "drilling of the first of three stratigraphic and range-finding drillholes at the FSC project area continues to make good progress and the drillhole has reached a depth of 1,923 metres. Examination of the core has confirmed a number of stratigraphic features that are consistent with the geophysical models developed prior to siting the drill hole.

On February 27, 2004, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced that it has completed a positive preliminary geological mapping and geochemical sampling exercise in the Serrita Project, which is located in Brazil, South America. The Serrita Project is one of four distinct mineral exploration properties owned by Brazmin Ltda., a wholly owned subsidiary of Wits Basin. The objective with the initial field inspection was to confirm the existence of various mineralized quartz veins.

On February 09, 2004, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced that they have completed their due diligence review of Brazmin Ltda., ("Brazmin"), a limited liability company located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and have acquired 99.99% of shares of quota capital of Brazmin. Brazil uses Quota shares as its form of capital stock. Furthermore, Brazilian law forbids 100% ownership by a foreign entity; therefore, one of the principals, a Brazilian resident, remains a quota holder.

On November 10, 2003, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced it has extend the expiration date for the Company's 690,000 redeemable publicly-traded warrants, which currently trade under the OTC Bulletin Board symbol WITMW ( prior to August 20, 2003 under the OTCBB symbol AIQTW ). The Company's board of directors has authorized an extension in the expiration date to May 31, 2004 from the previous extended date of November 28, 2003.

On November 07, 2003, Wits Basin Precious Minerals Inc. announced the appointment of Mr. Zoran Arandjelovic of Toronto, Ontario as a member of the Board of Directors of the Company.

Mr. Arandjelovic is the president and chief executive officer of Capital Z Corp., a venture capital firm.

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