EDMONTON, ALBERTA--(Marketwire - Jan. 14, 2013) - Firestone Ventures Inc. ("Firestone" or the "Corporation") (News - Market indicators)(FRANKFURT:F5V) is pleased to announce that it has signed an option agreement to earn a 100% interest in the Whale Cove Project ("Project"). The Project hosts multiple gold showings including the Big Lake target where gold mineralization is related to altered diorite-gabbro intrusions similar to those at Northquest Ltd.'s Vickers gold occurrence located 35 km to the northeast of Big Lake. Recent drilling from the Vickers target has returned 156.48 m grading 8.23 g/t Au (Northquest news release Nov 26, 2012). This new opportunity provides the Company with increased exposure to precious metals while still remaining focused on the advancement of Firestone's zinc district in Guatemala through our business alliance with Minero.

"We are very excited about the opportunity to acquire this highly prospective land package in the same district where drilling by Northquest has returned significant gold intercepts," says Firestone President and CEO Pamela Strand. "Firestone's management is highly experienced as operators in Canada's North and this acquisition provides Firestone with flexibility in terms of planning seasonal exploration programs, exposure to a variety of potential commodity streams, and large well mineralized land positions."

Highlights of the historical work on the Project include:

• Big Lake Gold Prospect
  • Drill campaigns at Big Lake by INCO (1987) include several high-grade gold intersections within intensely altered and mineralized shear zones (12.4 g/t Au over 1.5 m and 9.79 g/t Au over 1 m) within a larger altered envelope (0.24 g/t Au over 79.5 m).
  • Two channel samples from silicified volcanic breccia at Big Lake returned 44.5 g/t gold over 0.7 m and 52.7 g/t gold over 1.2 m.
• Fat Lake Property
  • High grade gold values from surface channel and drilling have been reported in fault/vein structures in diorite sills at the Fat Lake Main deposit and North prospects (14.3 g/t Au over 1.8 m and 33.21 g/t Au over 1.5 m - both downhole).
  • Historic work at the Fat deposit included an underground decline to 20 m depth and a 350 m long ramp to facilitate exploration on veins.
  • Five trench samples from sampling of quartz-carbonate veins with visible gold at the White Whale prospect assayed between 175 g/t gold and 234 g/t gold.

The Whale Cove Project comprises 8,516 hectares of mineral rights on Inuit Owned Land, in three separate project areas located in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut. The project is located 25 km west-southwest from the community of Whale Cove, located on tidewater of Hudson Bay and also 100 km south of Rankin Inlet, a full service community of 3,000 people. The rights to the Project are governed by two fully executed Exploration Agreements between Tiktaliik Gold Corp. ("Vendor") and Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated.

Of particular interest to Firestone is the presence of a numerous gold showings in the Whale Cove area, as well as the recent recognition that the Central Hearne subdomain hosting the Firestone Whale Project, Northquest's Pistol Bay Project and Agnico Eagle's Meliadine gold deposits may have once been part of the Abitibi Subprovince. The Abitibi greenstone belt is one of the world's richest gold belts with over 100 historical and producing mines that have produced 170 million ounces of gold. The relatively unexplored Central Hearne offers the potential to leverage exploration expertise from the Abitibi to make major new gold discoveries in Nunavut.

More than $15 million has been spent on historical exploration on the three separate Whale Project areas, much of it spent during the 1980's. Firestone intends to compile the historical data in light of the new geological models and recent gold discoveries in the Kivalliq region. This will be followed by a field program in 2013 to identify priority targets for future drill testing.

Firestone has signed an option agreement with the Vendor whereby Firestone can acquire a 100-per-cent interest in the Project, based on the following terms: (i) cash payments of $250,000, (ii) issuance of 2,000,000 common shares, and (iii) $2,000,000 in exploration expenditures, all over a period of five years. The Vendor will retain a 2% net smelter return interest on the property and Firestone can purchase back one-half of the NSR for $1,000,000. This transaction is subject to all regulatory approvals. Pamela Strand is a Firestone director and holds a 33.3% share ownership in the Vendor.

Firestone Ventures Inc.

Firestone is a Canadian-based exploration and development company with zinc-lead-silver and copper projects in Central America and has been working in Guatemala since 2004. Our main project is the Torlon zinc-lead-silver deposit in Guatemala where Firestone is currently working on a Preliminary Economic Assessment. The current National Instrument 43-101 oxide resource (see news release Nov 18, 2008 on www.sedar.com) is summarized in the following table and the deposit remains open to expansion. The 43-101 resource used a 3% zinc equivalent cut-off grade and a 35.5% zinc top-cut.

In addition to Torlon, Firestone also has a large land position covering a significant portion of the Central Guatemala Zinc District with four drill ready targets and over fifty zinc mineral occurrences. The land position has excellent exploration potential and with systematic exploration could develop as the world's next major zinc district. The company also owns 100% of the past producing Oxec copper deposit which, based on historical reports, has produced over 1Mt grading 3% copper (according to unverified historical records).

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Pamela Strand, P.Geol., President of Firestone Ventures and a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101. Firestone is relying on Northquest's news releases and SEDAR filings on www.sedar.com for the information on the Pistol Bay project and has not independently verified the Northquest information. There is no certainty that Firestone will find similar results in the Whale Cove project area. Historical exploration results for Whale Cove were reported by previous operators before NI 43-101 was in place. Firestone has not independently verified the historical exploration results as reported in various sources including assessment reports and news releases but believes that the work was carried out according to industry standards and that the results provide an indication of the potential of the property.

This news release may contain forward looking statements, being statements which are not historical facts, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization, exploration results, resource or reserve estimates, anticipated production or results, sales, revenues, costs, "best-efforts" financings or discussions of future plans and objectives. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove accurate. Such statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and future events to differ materially from those anticipated or projected. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations are in Company documents filed from time to time with the TSX Venture Exchange and provincial securities regulators, most of which are available at www.sedar.com. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to revise or update such statements unless required by law. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.