Hunter Bay Minerals plc Enters Into Agreement to Acquire Operating Rights on Sela Creek Project

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwire - March 15, 2011) - Hunter Bay Minerals plc ("Hunter Bay") (TSX VENTURE: HBY) is pleased to announce it has entered into a share purchase agreement (the "Agreement") with Chris Ellis (the "Vendor") and Gibiley S.A. ("Gibiley") to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Gibiley. Gibiley, a Uruguayan company, has the right to operate, for a period of ten years, the alluvial tailings on the Sela Creek Project pursuant to the terms of an operating agreement with Sela Kriki Okanisi Resources N.V. i.o. (the "Owner").

In consideration for all of the issued and outstanding shares of Gibiley, Hunter Bay has paid USD $70,000 to the Vendor and will pay an additional USD $100,000 to the Vendor within a month of closing of the transaction. As additional consideration for Gibiley, Hunter Bay has also granted to the Vendor a royalty equal to ten percent of the gold produced from commercial production of the alluvial tailings.

At the request of Hunter Bay, the Vendor will be required to build and deliver a pilot alluvial washing plant to Hunter Bay. The pilot washing plant will be used for the purpose of Hunter Bay carrying out its operating rights on the alluvial tailings. In the event that the Vendor is required to supply an alluvial gold washing plant, Hunter Bay has agreed to purchase the plant at cost within 12 months of commissioning provided that the purchase price does not exceed USD $150,000.


About Sela Creek

The Sela Creek Project is a grassroots stage exploration project located in eastern Suriname. The project is located at the southern edge of a major greenstone belt which also hosts deposits such as Rosebel (Iamgold), Nassau (Newmont) and Camp Caiman. Scout reconnaissance sampling and mapping at Sela Creek identified styles of mineralization present at other greenstone-hosted deposits in the Guiana Shield, namely subvertical mesothermal quartz veins and lenses which are spatially related to regional shear zones and contacts with felsic intrusive bodies; limonitic shear zones which likely represent the supergene-altered surface expression of quartz-sulphide mineralized shear zones; and variably quartz-veined intrusives.

Alluvial gold has been produced from an area of approximately 30 square kilometres by small-scale artisanal miners using inefficient recovery systems. Preliminary bulk sampling has indicated the presence of fine gold throughout the tailings and Hunter Bay is planning to conduct a more rigorous bulk sampling program to test their economic potential. In addition to the economic potential of the tailings, Hunter Bay considers owning the rights to alluvial tailings to be of strategic importance to its Sela Creek operations.

Andrew Tunningley, MAusIMM, a director of Hunter Bay, is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and is responsible for the work program on the Sela Creek Project. Mr. Tunningley has supervised and approved all technical information in this news release.


About Hunter Bay

Hunter Bay is engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral resource properties located in Canada and South America. Hunter Bay currently owns a one-hundred percent (100%) interest in the Great Bear Lake Properties located in the eastern side of Great Bear Lake, NWT, has an option to acquire up to an eighty percent (80%) interest in the Sela Creek Project located in Suriname and has an option to acquire a forty five percent (45%) interest in the net profits of the Fortuna Project located in the Nambija Gold District, Ecuador.



Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. Hunter Bay cautions that all forward looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond Hunter Bay's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the exploration and development of Hunter Bay's properties, Hunter Bay's limited operating history; the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations; and potential defects in title to Hunter Bay's properties. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially form the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, Hunter Bay undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.



For more information, please contact

Hunter Bay Minerals plc
Christopher Wilson
CEO and President
(+44) 203-178-2101
(+44) 207-724-2734 (FAX)
http://www.hunterbayminerals.com