Equinox commences Offer to acquire Lundin

TORONTO, ON and PERTH, Australia, March 7 /CNW/ --
TORONTO, ON and PERTH, Australia, March 7 /CNW/ - Equinox Minerals
Limited (TSX and ASX: EQN) ('Equinox' or the 'Company') advises that it
has commenced its previously announced offer (the 'Offer') to acquire
Lundin Mining Corporation ('Lundin'). The Offer will remain open until
6:00pm on April 14, 2011 unless withdrawn or extended.

Under the terms of the Offer, each Lundin shareholder can elect to
receive consideration per Lundin share of either C$8.10 in cash or
1.2903 Equinox shares plus $0.01 , subject to a pro-ration based on a
maximum cash consideration of approximately C$2.4 billion and maximum
number of Equinox shares issued of approximately 379 million. The Offer
reflected an approximately 26% premium to the closing price of C$6.45
per Lundin share on the TSX on February 25 2011, the last trading day
prior to Equinox's announcement of its intention to make the Offer

Equinox's President and Chief Executive Officer Craig Williams said, 'I
believe we have put an attractive offer to shareholders of Lundin and
that this transaction will create value for shareholders of both
Equinox and Lundin. The clearly superior premium we are offering over
the nil-premium merger with Inmet represents an offer that should
provide a platform for the successful combination of our two
businesses'.

The combined company will have a geographically diverse portfolio of
complementary assets with a balanced pipeline of growth projects and an
industry leading production target of approximately 500,000 tonnes per
annum of copper production by 2016. Importantly this growth is driven
by expansions of existing operations and a mine under construction, as
opposed to larger higher risk greenfield projects.

Equinox has filed the Offer and take-over bid circular (and related
documents) with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. In
light of Lundin's listing on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm in Sweden,
Equinox intends to make the benefits of the Offer available in Sweden
and expects to announce relevant details shortly.

Equinox encourages shareholders of Lundin to read the full details of
the Offer set forth in the formal Offer and take-over bid circular,
which contains the full terms and conditions of the Offer as well as
detailed instructions on how Lundin shareholders can tender their
common shares to the Offer. Copies of the Offer, take-over bid circular
and related documents as well as a presentation summarizing the
benefits of the Offer are available online at SEDAR.com and www.equinoxminerals.com. For assistance in depositing Lundin shares to the Offer, Lundin
shareholders should contact Kingsdale Shareholder Services Inc., the
information agent for the Offer, at 1-888-518-1558 (North American Toll
Free Number) or 1-416-867-2272 (Outside North America).

The Offer is subject to certain conditions including, without
limitation, termination of the existing Lundin-Inmet Arrangement
Agreement in accordance with its terms, and a simple majority approval
of the votes cast by Equinox shareholders at a meeting of
Equinox shareholders to be held on April 11, 2011, with respect to the
issuance of Equinox shares in connection with the Offer. Other
conditions include acceptance of the Offer by Lundin shareholders
owning not less than two-thirds of Lundin's shares outstanding on a
fully-diluted basis, receipt of applicable regulatory approvals, and
other customary unsolicited offer conditions.

About Equinox

Equinox Minerals Limited is an international mining company dual-listed
on the Canadian (Toronto) and Australian stock exchanges.

The Company is currently focused on operating its 100% owned large scale
Lumwana Copper Mine in Zambia and construction of the Jabal Sayid
Copper-Gold project in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Equinox acquired the Lumwana project in 1999 and following nearly 10
years of feasibility, financing and construction, commissioned the
mine, plant and infrastructure in December 2008. Situated 220
kilometres northwest of the Zambian Copperbelt, Lumwana is now a major
copper mine which has established Equinox as one of the world's top 20
copper producing companies.

Equinox recently acquired the Jabal Sayid project as the project entered
the construction phase with first production scheduled for 2012. Jabal
Sayid is located within the Arabian Shield minerals province, 350
kilometres north-east of the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, the
commercial capital of Saudi Arabia, and 120 kilometres south-east of
Medina.

For information on Equinox and technical details on the Lumwana and
Jabal Sayid projects please refer to the company website at www.equinoxminerals.com

Cautionary Notes

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information contained or incorporated by reference in this press
release include forward-looking statements, which may include, but is
not limited to, statements with respect to the future financial or
operating performances of Equinox, its subsidiaries and their
respective projects, the timing and amount of estimated future
production, estimated costs of future production, capital, operating
and exploration expenditures, costs and timing of the expansion of the
Lumwana copper mine in Zambia and development of the Jabal Sayid
copper-gold project in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the future price
copper and uranium, the estimation of mineral reserves and mineral
resources, the realization of mineral reserve estimates, the costs of
Equinox's hedging policy, costs and timing of future exploration,
requirements for additional capital, government regulation of
exploration, development and mining operations, environmental risks,
reclamation and rehabilitation expenses, title disputes or claims, and
limitations of insurance coverage. All statements, other than
statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements can often, but not always, be identified by
the use of words such as 'plans', 'expects', 'budget', 'scheduled',
'estimates', 'forecasts', 'intends', 'anticipates', 'predicts',
'potential', 'continue' or 'believes', or variations (including
negative variations) of such words; or statements that certain actions,
events or results 'may', 'could', 'would', 'should', 'might',
'potential to', or 'will' be taken, occur or be achieved or other
similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts.
The purpose of forward-looking statements is to provide the reader with
information about management's expectations and plans.  Readers are
cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future
performance.

Forward-looking statements are necessarily based on a number of factors,
estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Equinox
as of the date of such statements, are inherently subject to
significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and
contingencies. Such factors, estimates and assumptions of the Company
contained in this news release include, but are not limited to,
anticipated financial or operating performances of Equinox, its
subsidiaries and their respective projects; future prices of copper and
uranium; the estimation of mineral reserves and resources; the
realization of mineral reserve estimates; the timing and amount of
estimated future production; estimated costs of future production; the
grade, quality and content of the concentrate produced; the sale of
production and the performance of offtakers; capital, operating and
exploration expenditures; costs and timing of development and expansion
of Lumwana and Jabal Sayid; the costs of Equinox's hedging policy; the
costs and timing of future exploration; requirements for additional
capital; government regulation of exploration, development and mining
operations; environmental risks; reclamation and rehabilitation
expenses; title disputes or claims; that Equinox will acquire 100%
interest in Lundin through the Offer; management's assessment of the
successful integration of the combined companies upon completion of the
Offer; management's expectations of growth and production upon
completion of the Offer; the viability of Lundin's assets and projects
on a basis consistent with the management's current expectations; there
being no significant risks relating to the Company's or Lundin's mining
operations, including political risks and instability and risks related
to international operations; and limitations of insurance coverage.
While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on
information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.

Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the
actual results, performance or achievements of Equinox and/or its
subsidiaries to differ materially from those expressed or implied in
the forward-looking statements, including the risk that the Offer will
not be completed for any reason. Certain of these risks and
uncertainties are described in more detail in the section entitled
'Risks Factors' in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March
15, 2010 and in the Company's most recently filed Management's
Discussion and Analysis, to which readers are referred and which are
incorporated by reference in this news release. The Company's Annual
Information Form and its most recently filed Management's Discussion
and Analysis are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.equinoxminerals.com.

Although Equinox has attempted to identify statements containing
important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to
differ materially from those described in forward-looking information,
there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to
differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Forward-looking
information contained herein are made as of the date of this document
based on the opinions and estimates of management on the date
statements containing such forward looking information are made, and
Equinox disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking
information, whether as a result of new information, estimates or
opinions, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by
law. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will
prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ
materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly,
readers should not place undue reliance on forward looking information.

The information in this announcement concerning Lundin and Lundin's
assets and projects is based on publicly available information and has
not been independently verified by Equinox.

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