Equinox files materials for special meeting of shareholders

TORONTO, March 15 /CNW/ --
TORONTO, March 15 /CNW/ - Equinox Minerals Limited (TSX: EQN) (ASX: EQN) ('Equinox' or the 'Company') today filed a Notice of Meeting and
Management Information Circular in connection with its special meeting
of shareholders scheduled for April 11, 2011 related to its take-over
bid (the 'Offer') to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares
of Lundin Mining Corporation ('Lundin'). The materials will be mailed
to the Equinox shareholders in the coming days. 

Equinox believes the combination of its assets with those of Lundin will
bring together two highly complementary asset portfolios. Following a
combination, Equinox would possess one of the copper sector's leading
growth profiles based primarily on lower risk expansions of existing
operating assets. The combined company will hold four key copper
operations, consisting of Lumwana, Tenke Fungurume, Neves Corvo and
Jabal Sayid, each of which Equinox believes has significant expansion
and exploration upside potential. The resulting company will be well
positioned to aggressively pursue this growth in light of the
exploration and development experience of its management team.

Commenting on the Offer, Equinox President and CEO Craig Williams said,
'There is a strong rationale for a combination of these assets and we
believe that shareholders will benefit from the greater certainty of
this growth profile relative to peers, and by the delivery of this
strong production growth into the near-term copper price cycle.'

The offer to acquire Lundin is consistent with Equinox's strategy of
building the leading global pure copper growth company in a manner that
also delivers value to our shareholders. An acquisition of Lundin is
expected to:

    --  Provide the shareholders with exposure to a major international
        copper mining company targeting 500,000 tonnes per annum of
        copper metal production by 2016;
    --  Result in increased diversification, scale and liquidity for
        Equinox shareholders;
    --  Increase copper production per share for Equinox shareholders
        as well as improve the operating margin per share for Equinox
        shareholders; and
    --  Be immediately accretive to Equinox's cash flow per share and
        earnings per share.

The cash consideration within Equinox's offer is fully financed though a
US$3.2 billion bridge finance facility which the Company expects to
refinance through a combination of medium and long term debt
instruments. These are likely to include a blend of commercial term and
revolver loans, convertible bonds and high yield bonds, providing an
efficient and flexible capital structure for the combined company over
the longer term.

Equinox believes that the bridge facility has been structured to
mitigate any risk to shareholders by eliminating any obligation for
short term principal repayments, by excluding any hedging requirements,
by excluding any covenants that involve leverage ratios or links to
commodity prices, and by excluding any obligations to issue pure equity
instruments as part of a refinancing plan.

Equinox believes it has secured an attractive financing package that
reflects the company's financial strength, and ensures Equinox can
comfortably service the anticipated acquisition debt, even based on
downside copper price scenarios utilizing assumed copper prices of
US$3.50 per pound of copper in 2011 moving down to a longer term price
of US$1.75 per pound of copper by 2014.  By contrast, based on current
analyst consensus copper prices, Equinox would expect to return to a
net cash position within four years. 

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

This press release is not an offering of securities for sale in the
United States. None of the securities referred to herein have been
registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and such
securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent
registration or an exemption from the registration requirements of that
Act.

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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