VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - June 17, 2011) - Quantum Rare Earth Development Corp. (News - Market indicators)(OTCQX:QREDF)(FRANKFURT:BR3) (www.quantumrareearth.com), a junior exploration company with a focus on seeking out potentially economic deposits of Niobium and other rare earth elements on its mining–friendly mineral properties in the U.S. and abroad, announced today that Peter Dickie, President and CEO, recently was presented the "2011 Business Leader & Entrepreneur Award" by Independent Group Home Living (IGHL) (www.ighl.org), one of the largest not-for-profit organizations in New York. He was given the award in recognition of his vision and entrepreneurship in the business community in helping to advance the domestic production of Niobium. The U.S. government considers Niobium a "strategic metal" that's critical for the economic and national security of the country, but there are only a few sources of the material and the U.S. is dependent mostly on imports. 

The Leadership Award was presented to Dickie by Konrad "Konnie" Kuhn, a leading analyst, at IGHL's annual fundraising gala on the North Shore of Long Island. Dickie was among several top business leaders who received the Leadership Award, which is sponsored by The National Small Public Company Leadership Council. The Washington, D.C./West Palm Beach, FL-based Leadership Council works to educate and inform the White House, U.S. Congress and federal agencies about issues impacting the nation's small publicly-traded companies.

"Peter Dickie has taken a crucial leadership role in helping the U.S. move towards being independent from Niobium imports by having the strategic vision for Quantum and its acquiring mineral rights to the Elk Creek Carbonatite, a large 7 kilometer wide circular structure in southeast Nebraska. The formation hosts significant amounts of Niobium and rare earths. The U.S. Geological Survey has concluded that it 'has the potential to be one of the largest global sources of Niobium and rare-earth elements,'" stated Kuhn during the Leadership Award presentation to Dickie. Kuhn is Editor and Publisher of The KonLin Letter, a subscriber-based monthly that has been published by KonLin Research & Analysis in New York for nearly 30 years. He is also Co-Founder and Chairperson of IGHL.

"Quantum's drilling program at the Elk Creek project got underway in spring and Dickie's sense of timing is opportunistic, as the U.S. government hopes to find domestic sources for Niobium as worldwide demand has grown from under 30,000 tons to nearly 80,000 tons in the past seven years," said Kuhn. He applauded Dickie for his business savvy about Washington and its recognition about the value of Niobium. Development of the Elk Creek project will potentially benefit from a recent bill: the House of Representatives has passed the Rare Earths and Critical Materials Revitalization Act, with broad support, by a vote of 324 to 92. The bill aims to enhance competition by supporting the domestic production of strategic materials – including Niobium.

On Behalf of the Board,

Peter Dickie, President, CEO