Additional Support for Project Development and Engineering

LONDON, ON, Aug. 29, 2011 /CNW/ - Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX-FT) ("Fortune" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the addition of two new members to its project development and engineering teams at its head office in London, Ontario. Michael De Carlo has joined the company as Project Manager and Keith Lee as Senior Process Engineer.  "We are proud that our advanced stage projects have helped us attract exceptional people in a highly competitive market for mining talent. The expansion to our team is further progress towards our goal of becoming a reliable North American producer of metallurgical coal, gold and specialty metals", said Tom Rinaldi, Vice-President Operations of Fortune.

Michael De Carlo, B.Sc., B.B.A., has recently joined the Company as Project Manager.  Michael has more than 40 years of project management and engineering experience, including 22 years in Senior Manager positions. In these prior roles he contributed to operating efficiencies at existing mines, rehabilitated former producing mines and gained valuable experience bringing grass roots projects into commercial production. His extensive involvement with all aspects of mine start ups in remote locations has successfully demonstrated his creativity in dealing with logistical concerns, local and national politics, health and safety issues, and workforce training. Michael's previous experience includes work on projects for North American Construction, Agrium, Synenco Energy and Agnico-Eagle Mines.

Keith Lee, B.Sc., has also joined Fortune as Senior Process Engineer.  Keith has 25 years experience in the mineral processing industry including the design, construction and operation of mineral treatment facilities for gold and base metal projects. Primarily operating in Alaska, he has a proven record of success working in the north and with challenging logistical and scheduling issues associated with remote projects. Keith's initial focus will be to manage the ongoing detailed engineering in preparation for construction of the Company's NICO project, review of the capital estimates, and review of the process engineering for both the concentrator at the mine and the metals processing facility to be constructed in Saskatchewan. Keith's Alaska experience includes process engineering positions at Teck's Red Dog Mine, NovaGold's Nome Operations, Tricon Mining's Grant Mine and Enserch's Independence Mine. 

About Fortune Minerals Limited:

Fortune is a diversified resource company with several mineral deposits and a number of exploration projects, all located in Canada.  The Company is focused on the development of the Mount Klappan anthracite metallurgical coal deposits in British Columbia and the NICO gold-cobalt-bismuth-copper deposit in the Northwest Territories ("NT").  As part of the development of the NICO deposit, Fortune is developing a hydrometallurgical plant in Saskatchewan to process NICO concentrates to high value metal products. The company has also acquired the buildings and equipment from the Golden Giant Mine at Hemlo, Ontario, which have been dismantled, moved, and stored for relocation to NICO.  In addition, the Company owns the Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit and other exploration projects in the NT.  Fortune is focused on outstanding performance and growth of shareholder value through assembly and development of high quality mineral resource projects.

This press release contains forward-looking information. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, proposed production of metallurgical coal, gold and specialty metals, the proposed development of the NICO project and the proposed purchase and development of the site for the Saskatchewan metals processing plant ("SMPP"). Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is given, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information.  These factors include the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties, the inherent volatility of metal prices, the risk that the Company may not be able to arrange the necessary financing to construct and operate the Mount Klappan coal project, the NICO mine or the SMPP, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits for the development of the Mount Klappan coal project, the NICO project or the SMPP, the possibility of delays in the commencement of production from the Mount Klappan coal project, the NICO project or construction of the SMPP and other factors. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company.  The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.