February 4, Vancouver, BC � Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. (TSX: NDM; NYSE MKT: NAK) ("Northern Dynasty" or the "Company") announced today that Thomas C. (Tom) Collier, a respected US regulatory lawyer based in Washington DC and former Chief of Staff in the U.S. Department of Interior, has been named Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Pebble Limited Partnership (�Pebble Partnership� or �PLP), replacing John Shively. Collier has served as senior external counsel to Northern Dynasty since 2011.

A former Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources (�DNR�) and Chief of Staff to former Alaska Governor Bill Sheffield, Shively has been named Chairman of Pebble Mines Corp (�PMC�). He will continue to play an active role on the Pebble strategic leadership team.

�Resolving complex, challenging and controversial development projects has been the major focus of my career for the past several decades, so I welcome the challenge of serving as Pebble CEO,� Collier said. �I will immediately focus my energies on preparing the strategy and scientific resources necessary to secure federal and state permits for the construction and operation of a modern, long-life mine at Pebble in the years ahead.�

Collier�s 40-year career, spent principally as a partner at Steptoe & Johnson in Washington DC, includes extensive natural resource sector experience, particularly as it relates to federal regulation and permitting. He specializes in providing strategic leadership to companies navigating federal environmental permitting processes, specifically the Environmental Impact Statement (�EIS�) process under the National Environmental Policy Act (�NEPA�) and 404 wetlands permitting under the Clean Water Act.

Collier has played a senior role on several major projects that successfully secured federal permits in Alaska � including reauthorization of the Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.�s Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) and several developments undertaken by Conoco Phillips. Based on his industry experience, as well as his time serving as Chief of Staff for Bruce Babbitt at the US Department of the Interior, Collier has developed extensive knowledge of and networks within key federal regulatory agencies � including the US Army Corps of Engineers and US Environmental Protection Agency.

�From my experience, I have developed three key principles that I believe are essential to resolving the kind of environmental controversy we see at Pebble,� he said. �First, natural resource development and environmental protection can and do co-exist; second, science is the key to resolving such controversies; and third, the NEPA-required EIS process is the best way to resolve scientific disagreements.

�I am bringing these lessons and my extensive experience with the section 404 permitting process to Pebble, and I�m confident that this great project will be permitted and built in Alaska.�

Northern Dynasty President & CEO Ron Thiessen thanked Shively for his six years of service to PLP, and noted the Pebble organization will continue to benefit from the new PMC Chairman�s knowledge of Alaska and its permitting and regulatory system, as well as his relationships with the state�s government, business, community and Native leaders.

�With Tom as CEO, we have a US federal and regulatory permitting specialist, and a business leader with a positive track record for achieving development permits for large, complex and controversial projects,� he said. �And in John we have one of Alaska�s most respected and experienced business leaders, whose track record for working with government and Alaska Native communities is unparalleled.

�Today�s announcement has only strengthened our corporate and project leadership team at Pebble. We look forward with great enthusiasm to the next major milestones for this project � announcing a new major funding partner and initiating project permitting under NEPA.�

To view this news release in its entirety please click on the link below or copy and paste it into your web browser� http://www.northerndynastyminerals.com/ndm/NewsReleases.asp?ReportID=622139

For more information on Northern Dynasty please visit the Company's website at www.northerndynasty.com or contact Investor services at (604) 684-6365 or within North America at 1-800-667-2114

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HDI is associated with the following companies: Heatherdale Resources Ltd., Curis Resources Ltd., Northcliff Resources Ltd., Rathdowney Resources Ltd., Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., Amarc Resources Ltd., and Quartz Mountain Resources Ltd. Visit us at www.hdimining.com for more information.