Vangold Resources Ltd. (Vangold) and the Honourable Albert Butare, the Rwandan Minister of State in Charge of Energy and Water, declares that the Rwandan government and Vangold have agreed to enter into discussions to negotiate a Special Hydrocarbon Exploration License (SHEL) for Vangold's oil and gas exploration actives in the prospective Kivu Graben.

The proposed SHEL is the next step in Vangold's and Rwanda's commitment to advance its hydrocarbon exploration program in the sedimentary basin of the Rwandan Kivu Graben which covers 1,631 square kms. The Kivu Graben is located south of the Albertine Graben in Uganda on Lake Albert, where Tullow Oil plc and Heritage Oil have made major oil and gas discoveries. Both the Albertine and Kivu Grabens occupy the northern part of the western branch of the East African rift system (EARS).

Vangold's initial commitment to the oil and gas potential of the Kivu Graben was a Technical Evaluation Agreement (TEA) signed in October 2007 in which Vangold was granted the exclusive right to assess the hydrocarbon and petroleum potential in the Rwandan side of the western branch of the African rift. Under the terms of the TEA, Vangold completed a 900 km airborne gravity and aeromagnetic study as well as an advanced SAR satellite imagery analysis of the Rwanda side Lake Kivu.

"We have been very pleased with the geochemical, geophysical and other technical data that Vangold, together with its consultants, have developed on Lake Kivu in Rwanda under the terms of the TEA", said Dal Brynelsen, President of Vangold. "Based on the partially completed 2008 gravity and magnetic survey, we have identified a 400 square km basin under Lake Kivu," continued Brynelsen. "We want to increase our Rwandan exploration activities and look forward to working closely with the Rwandan government and Minister Butare to successfully complete the SHEL."

Tags: Vangold Resources Ltd.