HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA--(Marketwire - Jan. 9, 2012) - Linear Metals Corporation (News - Market indicators)(PINK SHEETS:LMTCF) enters 2012 with great optimism as it ramps up exploration on its district-scale land package in southwest Kenya. Linear reports that visible gold was identified in three of five drill holes completed on the Kamwango Target in December 2011 with assays from all five holes pending as of this date. Linear will continue to focus on this advanced gold target in 2012 while systematically advancing its strategic property package covering approximately 2,000 square kilometres (200,000 hectares) along a prolific gold-hosting greenstone belt.

Kenya Exploration - 2011 Review and 2012 Outlook

Kamwango Target - Nyanza Project

The Kamwango target, located in the central part of Linear's property package, represents Linear's most advanced and highest priority target based on reported limited historic drilling and the significant level of artisanal mining that includes at least 12 large-scale artisanal gold workings, scattered across a four kilometre northwest strike length trend of mineralization intersected by a two kilometre northeast strike length trend of mineralization. The successful resolution of a land tenure (license) issue in November 2011 allowed Linear to complete five drill holes prior to year-end (assays pending) and will allow Linear to fast-track exploration in this area in 2012. Highlights from the Kamwango target include:

• High density artisanal mining activity;
• Reported high-grade gold intersected from limited drilling in 2004 shallow drill program;
• Grab and chip samples from artisanal workings, remote from 2004 drill locations, of up to 96.6 grams per tonne of gold ("g/t Au");
• Five drill holes completed in 2011 with assays pending and visible gold identified in three of the five holes.

Brian MacEachen, Linear's Chief Executive Officer commented: "It is the high-grade gold mineralization in the Kamwango area that initially attracted us to this mineral belt. While the district-scale property package we have assembled represents an important long-term asset for Linear, we are excited that we can now focus our immediate exploration efforts on the Kamwango target and look forward to reporting drill results and exploration progress throughout 2012."

Acquisition of Strategic Property Package

Linear initiated a shift in its strategic focus in February 2011 with the completion of an agreement to earn an 80% interest (with the potential to increase its interest to 95%) in an initial three mineral exploration licenses covering numerous gold and base metal targets hosted in the Migori Greenstone Belt of southwestern Kenya. 

The Migori Greenstone Belt is part of the Archean Nyanzian Greenstone Belt that also extends into neighbouring Tanzania where it is host to several gold mines, notably African Barrick Gold's Bulyanhulu, Buzwagi and North Mara deposits and AngloGold's Geita deposit which together represent gold resources of over 40 million ounces. Within this prospective mineral belt, Linear has now assembled a district-scale land position dotted with past-producing artisanal and colonial-era workings, and hundreds of active artisanal mines where near-surface gold continues to be recovered through basic non-mechanized methods. This prospective mineral environment positions Linear's shareholders with the opportunity to benefit from multiple discoveries within this strategic property package.

Awuoro, Kanga and Kwoyo

In March 2011, Linear launched its Kenya exploration program within the Awuoro, Kanga and Kwoyo grids covering an area of approximately 60 square kilometres in the northwest quadrant of its Nyanza Project. Highlights of the 2011 work program include:

• Soil samples along the Awuoro-Kanga grids confirmed an approximate seven kilometre corridor of gold-in-soil anomalies, approximately one kilometre wide, with anomalous values running up to 2.53 g/t Au (2,530 ppb Au);
• Chip and grab samples from artisanal workings along the Awuoro-Kanga grid returned values up to 37.8 g/t Au;
• Assay results from 9 of 14 shallow drill holes (with the results from three holes pending) included:
  • 17.2 grams g/t Au over 0.7 metres ("m") (Ruga trend);
  • 3.7 g/t Au over 4.4 m (Ruga trend) including:
    • 6.96 g/t Au over 2.24 m;
    • 44.3 g/t Au over 0.25 m;
  • 2.50 g/t Au over 11.5 m (KE-11-11- Ruga trend - not previously reported and located over 150 m from the Ruga drill holes above); including
    • 50.3 g/t Au over 0.45 m, and 4.13 g/t Au over 0.9 m.
• On the Kwoyo grid, located to the northwest of the Kanga target, soil sampling has identified an additional area of gold-in soil anomalies extending approximately four kilometres in strike length and approximately one kilometre wide, where grab samples from three widely-spaced showings returned 4.8 to 5.5 g/t Au.

The high-grade gold mineralization intersected along the Ruga trend is located within an area of gold in soil anomalies with three parallel trends extending over 1.5 kilometres in strike length, at the east end of the Kanga grid. Linear's drill program tested an area approximately 200 m by 400 m within this trend.

Matt Rees, Linear's Vice President Exploration, commented on the Awuoro, Kanga and Kwoyo results, "We were successful in hitting high-grade gold-bearing structures along the Awuoro-Kanga anomaly, specifically the Ruga trend, which we believe may represent the discovery of a previously unknown, large-scale, gold-mineralized shear system. Together with the extensive artisanal and colonial-era workings within this area, these results confirm the potential for high-grade gold mineralization within our district-scale property. Future exploration will follow up on these encouraging results."

Investor Relations Appointment

The Company also reports that Jim Megann has been appointed Director of Investor Relations and Marketing effective December 1, 2011. Mr. Megann joins Linear from M5 Communications where he served as Senior Vice President. 

Brian MacEachen emphasised the importance of keeping our shareholders up to date and reaching out to new shareholders based on our outlook for 2012, "We are pleased to welcome Jim Megann to Linear's team. Jim's energy, passion and marketing savvy will be beneficial in communicating Linear's progress and vision as we advance our Kenya property portfolio in 2012."

This press release was prepared under the supervision of Matthew Ian Rees, M.Sc., P.Geo., VP Exploration for Linear Metals, who is a Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Rees has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this press release. Core samples were all split using a Diamond saw. Standards, duplicates and blanks are submitted with the core samples for QA/QC monitoring. Samples are stored in a locked building onsite, and delivered to Mwanza by Company vehicles and drivers, in numbered, tamper-proof tagged gunny sacks. All assays reported were performed by SGS Laboratories in Mwanza, Tanzania.

About Linear Metals Corporation

Linear Metals is focused on the exploration of a district-scale land package along a prolific gold-hosting greenstone belt in southwest Kenya. The 2,000 square kilometre property package has the potential to host multiple mineral deposits and provides Linear with an opportunity to advance the projects for the benefit of all stakeholders. Linear's exploration programs are focused on areas that have the potential to deliver large-scale deposits and success. 

Forward-Looking Information:

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future production, reserve potential, continuity of mineralization, exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. The likelihood of future mining at the Nyanza Project is subject to a large number of risks and will require achievement of a number of technical, economic and legal objectives, including obtaining necessary mining and construction permits, completion of pre-feasibility and final feasibility studies, preparation of all necessary engineering for pits and processing facilities as well as receipt of significant additional financing to fund these objectives, as well as funding mine construction. Such funding may not be available to the Company on acceptable terms or on any terms at all. There is no known ore at the Nyanza Project and there is no assurance that the mineralization at the Nyanza Project will ever be classified as ore. For more information on the Company and the risk factors inherent in its business, investors should review the Company's Annual Information Form at www.sedar.com.