ROYAL STANDARD MINERALS, INC.

WWW.ROYALSTANDARDMINERALS..COM

SYMBOLS: RSM-TSXV (Toronto Venture Exchange)

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=rsm.v

RYSMF- OTCBB (US OTCBB)

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=RYSMF.OB

Royal Standard Minerals Inc.: Progress Report to our Shareholders

HEATHSVILLE, VIRGINIA--(Marketwire - Feb. 18, 2009) - Royal Standard Minerals Inc. ("RSM" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:RSM)(OTCBB:RYSMF)

To Our Shareholders,

This letter is to bring our shareholders up to date in regard to the current activities with RSM during the past three (3) months of 2008-2009. The Company is engaged in an effort to achieve revenue in the near term from a potential coal development project located in Eastern Kentucky.

In June-July, 2008, a decision was made by management, to pursue a strategy of diversification that supported investing in the energy sector. The coal business in the Appalachian Basin was initiated to add an element of diversity and another source of potential revenue. Since September, 2008, the Company has been engaged in the development of the Campton coal project in Eastern Kentucky. The project has achieved all of the necessary permits to mine and produce coal. Recently, a compliant NI-43-101 resource report as filed on SEDAR (project #0137-5601). We have taken all the necessary steps to develop this property during the first quarter, 2009.

During 2008, the Company continued to pursue the Goldwedge advanced exploration project toward further underground bulk sampling and processing the mined gold mineralized material through the onsite gravity plant. This work also included some underground drilling.

The Goldwedge program required the renewal of the mining permit with the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection (NDEP). In addition to the construction of a dewatering well, an underground development program was put in place during this period to access a predicted higher grade gold zone within what is believed to be the main gold zone on the property. This work required considerable expense during 2007 - 2008.

The Company has taken steps to reduce the level of its capital outflow in order to remain a viable entity until market conditions improve. The obvious result of this effort is the curtailment of the Goldwedge project in the near term. The objective is to reduce expenditures on all levels and to only spend capital on projects that will return revenue and cash flow in the near term. Further to that goal the company will refine and sell all of the gold dore' that is currently in the Company's possession (all recovered dore' is stored in a safe deposit box at the local Nevada State Bank in Tonopah, Nevada) and complete the development of the Campton coal property in Eastern Kentucky.

The Company is currently active in the States of Nevada and Kentucky, with projects in Nye (the Goldwedge and Manhattan projects), Elko (the Pinon, Railroad, and Dark Star projects) and Churchill (Fondaway Canyon and Dixie-Comstock projects) Counties, Nevada and Wolfe (Campton Project) County, Kentucky. The Company's common shares are listed on the US OTC:BB symbol RYSMF and in Canada on the TSX Venture Exchange symbol RSM, the Company's shares on the TSX.V have been halted from trading since January, 2009, an effort to get the common shares trading on this exchange is ongoing.

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for adequacy or accuracy of this release as per Exchange Policy 3.3 section 6.5.

Royal Standard Minerals Inc. cautions that the statements made in this press release and other forward looking statements made on behalf of the Company may be affected by such other factors including, but not limited to, volatility of mineral prices, product demand, market competition, imprecision of mineral estimates, and other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the Securities and Exchange Commission filings of the Company.

C.U.S.I.P. # 780919106

For more information, please contact

Royal Standard Minerals Inc.
Roland Larsen
804-580-8107
804-580-4132 (FAX)

or

Royal Standard Minerals Inc.
Rich Kaiser
Investor Relations
800-631-8127
www.Royalstandardminerals.com

Source: Royal Standard Minerals Inc.

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