Santo Mining Corp Starts Metalullurgy Testing to Optimize Gold & Silver Extraction

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, May 9, 2013 -- Santo Mining Corporation (OTCQB:SANP), (the "Company"), announced it has commissioned leading metallurgy laboratories SGS Metcon / KD Engineering, of Tucson, AZ and The Center For Advanced Mineral And Metallurgical Processing (or "CAMP") at Montana Tech of the University of Montana, Butte, MT.

Together they will conduct advanced testing on bulk ore samples collected from the "Angel Del Desierto" concession located at Ocampo, Coahuila, Mexico, 45 miles south of the United States border. Recent assays by Inspectorate Labs, Reno have returned impressive average grades up to 8.581 g/t Gold and 148.1 g/t Silver. Scheduled to take two weeks, this new round of testing will outline processes to optimize the extraction of the precious metals. In only nine months Santo Mining has transformed from a fledgling exploration company into an incipient gold and silver producer.

In April and May 2012 respected mine engineer Juan Luis Castillo Velez together with CEO Al French collected five soil and rock samples totaling 100 kilos for metallurgical study. The samples were dispatched in secure plastic buckets to the SGS facility in Durango, Mexico where they were repackaged and forwarded to SGS in Tucson, Arizona. During the following two weeks SGS will conduct precious metal characterization, gravity concentration, cyanide leaching, and bottle roll testing. Three samples will be forwarded to Montana Tech for mineralogy testing on their MLA or Automated mineral analysis system. The various studies will define the mineral ore and provide a general understanding of the ore body and outline processes that will optimize the extraction of gold, silver and potential platinum group metal previously reported in an economic evaluation by Platinum Investments.

Santo Mining will establish a 100% owned local subsidiary in Mexico to administer this project. As early as this summer, the Company plans to commission a qualified geologist to supervise a shallow core-drilling program with the objective of substantially increasing the inferred resources for precious metals within the policies of the CIM 43-101 standard. The Company also plans to have SGS run a pilot plant to fine tune the design of a concentration plant. Funding will likely be sourced from a recently approved $16 million equity funding program with Hanover Holdings I, LLC, of New York.

Al French, CEO, Santo Mining stated: "We are forging ahead and utilizing all available resources to keep our promise to begin producing gold and silver in the short term. This, in conjunction with the recent $16 million equity funding agreement, and enormous Greenfield opportunity in the Dominican Republic, will allow us to continue our exponential growth curve."


About Santo Mining

Santo Mining Corporation is a junior minerals exploration and development company, based in the Dominican Republic. The Company is actively pursuing the acquisition and exploration of properties, which are strategically located in the prolific and highly prospective Hispaniola Gold-Copper Back-Arc area in the Dominican Republic. A detailed description of the Company's activities is available at www.SantoMining.com.

Further information on the Company and its filings can be found at www.sec.gov


Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This current report contains "forward-looking statements," as that term is defined in Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Statements in this press release, such as the Company's plans to acquire a number of highly prospective gold exploration properties, which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future, including but not limited to, any mineralization, development or exploration of the Company's properties and the timing of any work program or exploration activities, and any results that may be obtained or the commencement of production.

Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. Such factors include, among others, the inherent uncertainties associated with mineral exploration and difficulties associated with obtaining financing on acceptable terms. We are not in control of metals prices and these could vary to make development uneconomic. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and we assume no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the beliefs, plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance those beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions will prove to be accurate. Investors should consult all of the information set forth herein and should also refer to the risk factors disclosure outlined in our most recent annual report for our last fiscal year, our quarterly reports, and other periodic reports filed from time-to-time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.



For Further Information, please contact:

Tyler Troup, B.Comm
Circadian Group, Investor Relations
North American: 1-(647) 930-1037
Toll free: 1-(866)-865-2780