Lara Exploration Ltd.: Definitive Agreement Signed with Halston for the Condoroma Project

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 01/09/12 -- Lara Exploration Ltd. (TSX VENTURE: LRA) ('Lara' or the 'Company'), is pleased to report that it has completed an Option and Joint Venture Agreement ('the Agreement'), whereby Halston Exploration Inc. ('Halston'), can earn a 75% interest in the Company's Condoroma Copper-Gold Project (the 'Project') in southern Peru, by paying US$1.8 million in cash and shares to Lara, investing US$10.5 million in exploration and completing a Pre-Feasibility study on the Project within seven years as outlined in the two tables that follow.

Andre Gauthier, President of Lara commented: 'We consider Condoroma to be one of our most promising copper targets, with the potential to host a large porphyry system. We are thus very happy to have found in Halston a partner that is able to support a program that could realize this potential.'

Halston is in the process of being acquired by Australian Stock Exchange ('ASX') listed company AXG Mining Limited (ASX: AXC) ('AXG') and will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of AXG upon settlement of the acquisition, assuming the obligations of Halston under the Agreement with Lara.

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   First Option to Earn a 55% Interest in the Condoroma Project
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           Cash Payment    AXG Shares     Exploration    Drilling
Date              (US$)          (US$)          (US$)     (metres)
------------------------------------------------------------------
Signing         100,000
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Year-1          100,000        100,000      1,000,000        1,500
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Year-2          250,000        250,000      1,000,000        2,000
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Year-3                                      1,500,000
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Once it has earned a 55% interest in the Project, Halston can elect to earn an additional 20% of the Project by paying US$1 million to Lara, spending US$7 million on exploration over a 4-year period and completing a Pre-Feasibility Study to National Instrument 43-101 Standards within 4 years as follows:

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   Second Option to Earn a 20% Interest (total 75%) in the Condoroma
                                Project
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            Cash Payment     AXG Shares      Exploration     Drilling
Date               (US$)          (US$)            (US$)      (metres)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice        1,000,0000
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Year-1                                     greater than
                                               1,500,000
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Year-2                                     greater than
                                               1,500,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Year-3                                     greater than
                                               1,500,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Year-4                                   Pre-feasibility
----------------------------------------------------------------------

The Condoroma Copper-Gold Project covers 13,325 hectares adjacent to three old polymetallic mines (silver, lead, zinc, copper, gold). The property is located on the southeast extension of the Cu-Au skarn-porphyry belt that hosts the Bambas (greater than 2 billion tons with over 1.0% Cu) and Tintaya copper deposits (greater than 2 billion tons with over 1.0% Cu).

To date, the Company has delineated eight significant zones of porphyry copper style surface alteration and mineralization on the property. At Oro y Paloma, the best developed of these targets, the Company has completed systematic mapping, surface sampling and geophysical surveys (Magnetic and Induced Polarization) to define drill targets. The Oro y Paloma target is an approximately 1,700 by 800 metre area of clay and silica altered volcanics, with anomalous copper and gold values from surface sampling.

Quality Control

Andre Gauthier, Lara's President, a member of the Quebec Order of Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and is responsible for the preparation and verification of the technical information in this release.

About Lara

Lara is an exploration company following the Prospect Generator business model, which aims to minimize shareholder dilution and financial risk by generating prospects and then exploring them in joint ventures funded by partners. The Company currently holds a diverse portfolio of prospects and deposits primarily in Brazil and Peru where it has signed agreements for fifteen joint ventures. Lara's common shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol 'LRA'.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Lara Exploration Ltd.

Chris MacIntyre

VP Corporate Development

+1 416 703 0010
www.laraexploration.com