General Moly Announces Water Rights Approval for Mt. Hope Project

General Moly, Inc. (the 'Company') (NYSE Amex and TSX: GMO) announced
that the Company, through a subsidiary, received approval of its water
applications for the Mt. Hope mine.

On July 15th, 2011, the Nevada State Engineer issued ruling 6127
granting the Company's water right applications for the use of 11,300
acre-feet annually (afa) of water for mining purposes, which will
facilitate the pumping of approximately 7,000 gallons per minute. The
specific water right permits are anticipated to be issued following
payment of statutory fees, and, following the State Engineer's approval
of a Monitoring, Management, and Mitigation Plan, (3M Plan), prepared in
cooperation with Eureka County, the water will be available for
consumptive use.

Bruce D. Hansen, Chief Executive Officer, said, 'We are extremely
pleased that once again the State Engineer has granted our water
applications, representing a major milestone for the development of the
Mt. Hope mine. Separate from the legal and administrative process, we
are also continuing discussions with area stakeholders who may have
legitimate concerns to hopefully mitigate their issues. We have been
working closely with Eureka County to develop a 3M Plan, which will be
submitted to the State Engineer′s office prior to water use, which will
provide additional protection for other water consumers in the Kobeh and
Diamond valleys through an open and transparent process. We maintain our
commitment to the Eureka Producers′ Cooperative through the
establishment of the Sustainability Trust to help Diamond Valley
conserve water and enhance the viability of the agricultural community.?

WATER RIGHTS HISTORY

The Mt. Hope mine will require a net of approximately 7,000 gallons per
minute of makeup water to facilitate ore processing, dust control, and
other uses.

In 2006 and 2007, the Company, through a wholly owned subsidiary,
acquired more than 15,630 afa of groundwater rights, primarily in the
Kobeh Valley groundwater basin, through the purchase of ranches owning
senior agricultural water rights. Those water rights require conversion
to mining use as well as a change in location from existing well
locations and places of use spread throughout Kobeh Valley to a more
concentrated well field and place of use located near the Mt. Hope
project. These actions require applications to the Nevada State
Engineer′s office, which were initially submitted in 2007.

In April 2009, the Nevada State Engineer issued Ruling 5966 granting the
Company′s applications for 11,300 afa, satisfying the Mt. Hope project′s
makeup water requirement. That ruling was appealed by the County of
Eureka and some local growers, including the Eureka Producers′
Cooperative (EPC). In April 2010, a Nevada District Court overturned the
State Engineer′s decision on a procedural issue, remanding the decision
back to the State Engineer to reconsider in a new hearing.

In December 2010 and May 2011, the State Engineer held public hearings
where the Company presented, among other things, its hydrology model to
the State Engineer and protestants, allowing for discussion and
testimony related to predicted impacts to existing water users.

In the meantime, the Company has continued to work on resolving concerns
with the protestants. In August 2010, the Company announced the creation
of a Sustainability Trust in cooperation with the EPC, which is tasked
with developing and implementing programs that will serve to enhance the
sustainability and well-being of the agricultural economy in the Diamond
Valley groundwater basin. In conjunction with the creation of the Trust,
the EPC withdrew its protests and appeal and has since cooperated with
the Company. The $4 million trust will be funded by Eureka Moly LLC, the
Company′s 80%-owned subsidiary.

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General Moly is a U.S.-based molybdenum mineral development, exploration
and mining company listed on the NYSE Amex (formerly the American Stock
Exchange) and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol GMO. Our
primary asset, our interest in the Mt. Hope  project located in central
Nevada, is considered one of the world's largest and highest grade
molybdenum deposits. Combined with our second molybdenum property, the
Liberty project that is also located in central Nevada, our goal is to
become the largest primary molybdenum producer by the middle of the
decade. For more information on the Company, please visit our website at http://www.generalmoly.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements herein that are not historical facts are 'forward-looking
statements? within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of
1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended and are intended to be covered by the safe harbor
created by such sections. Such forward-looking statements involve a
number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those projected, anticipated, expected, or
implied by the Company. These risks and uncertainties include, but are
not limited to, metals price and production volatility, global economic
conditions, currency fluctuations, increased production costs and
variances in ore grade or recovery rates from those assumed in mining
plans, exploration risks and results, political, operational and project
development risks, including the Company′s ability to obtain required
permits to commence production and its ability to raise required
financing, adverse governmental regulation and judicial outcomes. The
closing of the Hanlong transaction and obtaining bank financing are
subject to a number of conditions precedent that may not be fulfilled.
For a detailed discussion of risks and other factors that may impact
these forward looking statements, please refer to the Risk Factors and
other discussion contained in the Company′s quarterly and annual
periodic reports on Forms 10-Q and 10-K, on file with the SEC. The
Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements.

General Moly

Investors and Business Development:

Seth
Foreman, 303-928-8591

sforeman@generalmoly.com

or

Media:

Zach
Spencer, 775-748-6059

zspencer@generalmoly.com

or

Website:
http://www.generalmoly.com

info@generalmoly.com