FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

April 30, 2008

Mineral Resources Upgraded and Feasibility Study Nearing Completion at Woodlawn Tailings Re-Treatment Project, Woodlawn, NSW 

Tri Origin Exploration Ltd. (TOE:TSX-V) is pleased to report on progress made by the Company’s Australian subsidiary, Tri Origin Minerals Ltd (“TRO”) at the Woodlawn Zinc-Copper Projects in New south Wales. Mineral Resources at the Woodlawn Tailings Re-treatment Project (WRP) have been significantly increased and an initial draft of the Bankable Feasibility Study (BFS) is being reviewed and updated with the new mineral resource estimates. The following report has been summarized from TRO’s Quarterly Report for the period ended March 31, 2008 and Appendix 5B – Mineral Exploration Entity Quarterly Report which has been filed by TRO with the ASX.

Key Points

·         WRP Mineral Resources have been increased by 36% to 9.4 Mt of Measured and Indicated Resource grading 2.3% zinc, 0.5% copper, 1.4% lead, 0.3 g/t gold, and 32 g/t silver and an additional 2.3 Mt of Inferred Resource at similar grades with completion of the North Tailings Dam Mineral Resource estimate and a revision of the estimated South and West Tailings Dam Mineral Resources, following additional drilling.

·          First draft of the WRP feasibility study completed. Development decision to be taken in second quarter 2008.

·          Feasibility study of integrated WRP and Woodlawn Underground Project (WUP) to be completed following completion of the stand-alone WRP feasibility study.

·          Project financing alternatives for WRP have been canvassed and preferred funding plan being finalised.

·          Exploration around Woodlawn and in regional New South Wales is ongoing with EM and drilling scheduled.

·          At 31 March 2008, TRO’s cash on deposit amounted to $3,785,000.

Woodlawn Zinc Copper Projects Overview

A decision was taken in April 2007 to start work on a bankable feasibility study (BFS) at Woodlawn, the site of a significant past-producing copper, lead, zinc and silver mine located 200 kilometres southwest of Sydney, with the aim of completing the study by the first quarter of 2008.

The initial intent of the BFS was to study the feasibility of a stand-alone Woodlawn Underground Project (WUP) which involved reopening the Woodlawn underground mine to access high grade mineralisation that remained when the operation ceased in 1998. Since then, following positive outcomes from metallurgical test work, the scope of the study has been expanded to also evaluate the feasibility of a stand-alone Woodlawn Re-treatment Project (WRP) involving reclaiming and processing the tailings that were produced from the previous Woodlawn open cut and underground operations. 

By early 2008, the respective stand-alone studies of the WUP and WRP had progressed to a point where a decision was taken to focus on evaluating a staged development scenario which commences with the development of a stand-alone tailings re-treatment project followed by an incremental expansion into a fully integrated processing operation that treats both tailings and ore extracted by an underground mining operation. The integrated approach was taken to introduce a desired level of flexibility into the operation, provide a more capital efficient approach to project development than would be possible with two stand alone operations and achieve certain unit capital and operating cost advantages, particularly with the underground project.

WRP Feasibility Study:

The first draft of the feasibility study based on the published Measured, Indicated and Inferred Resource of 8.6 million tonnes of tailings from the South and West Tailings Dams has been completed by TRO’s consultants. Before taking a development decision based on this study, TRO will incorporate into the study:

·         The additional Measured, Indicated and Inferred North Tailings Dam Resource of 3.1 Mt (i.e. an increase of 36%). Metallurgical test work is in progress to confirm the expectation that the metallurgy of the material contained in the North Tailings Dam is consistent with tailings from the South and West Tailings Dams.

·        Results from a technical peer review process that will be undertaken to ensure optimum outcomes in terms of engineering, procurement and contracting strategy.

·        Results of discussions with potential off-takers of zinc, copper, and lead concentrates to firm up the potential marketing arrangements.

·        Results of review of alternative funding strategies and the selection of a preferred funding strategy.

A development decision on the stand-alone WRP is expected to be made during the second quarter of 2008.

Upgraded WRP Mineral Resources

Following receipt of assays from drilling completed in December 2007, Mineral Resource estimates have now been finalised and or revised for the three Tailings Dams from which tailings will be recovered and processed as part of the WRP.  Based on an independent assessment performed by GeoRes¹ the combined tonnage of Measured, Indicated and Inferred Resource contained in the North, South and West Tailings Dams has been increased by 36%, and is made up as follows:

WUP Feasibility Study

As part of the ongoing BFS for the WUP, two diamond holes were drilled in order to gain samples for metallurgical test work. Both holes targeted remnant mineralisation in pillars associated with old workings in the Woodlawn Underground Mine. The previously reported hole WLTD004 was designed to intersect part of C Lens, while hole WLTD005 was designed to intersect A and B1 Lenses. 

Drill Hole WLTD005

Additional samples for metallurgical test work were obtained by drilling hole WLTD005 through remnant pillars in the A and B1 Lenses (Refer to Table 1 for details of drill results).  The hole intersected relatively high-grade zinc-rich mineralisation associated with A Lens from 353 m to 371 m. Average core recovery through this interval was about 40%.

Similar mineralisation was intersected from 417 m to 427 m which represents B1 Lens. Core recovery through this interval averaged about 45%. Core recoveries have not been factored into the assays or associated intercept calculations, however, the widths and grades of mineralisation reported are consistent with adjacent holes drilled by previous operators.

A 5m wide zone (427 m to 432 m) of copper mineralisation was intersected in the immediate footwall of B1 Lens. Additional copper-rich mineralisation was also intersected deeper in the footwall of B1 Lens from 441 m to 446 m. 

Significant intersections^{2, 3} included:

*Footwall of B1 Lens

Integrated WRP / WUP Feasibility Study

The feasibility study of the integrated project involving both the tailings re-treatment and an underground mining and processing operation will be finalized following a development decision on the WRP which is expected in the second quarter of 2008. The study is intended to demonstrate the feasibility of an integrated operation producing up to 80,000 tonnes of concentrates per year from underground ore giving total integrated project output of between 120,000 and 140,000 tonnes of concentrates per year.

Statutory Approvals:

Work towards obtaining Part 3A approvals is progressing and appropriate consultants are working towards satisfaction of the Director General of the NSW Department of Planning’s requirements (“Director General’s Requirements”) prior to commencement of community consultation.

Transfer of Project Title

Discussions with Veolia Environmental Services Pty Limited, the operator of the Woodlawn Bioreactor and Waste Management Facility located in the disused Woodlawn pit void, have continued regarding final project boundaries and areas of operations. It is expected that documentation of the transfer of Special Mining Lease 20 (“SML 20”) and certain freehold property relating to SML 20 to TRO will be finalised prior to receipt of development consents.

Exploration

TRO continues to conduct exploration programs at a number of prospects within the Woodlawn district. This includes drilling and geophysical surveying nearby the Cowley Hills deposit which was mined by Denehurst Limited in 1990 and produced approximately 40,000 tonnes at 1.8% Cu, 2.9% Pb, 4.7% Zn, 118 g/t Ag and 1.9 g/t Au and geophysical surveying and drilling at the Woodlawn Northwest and Woodlawn West prospects. TRO will also be conducting ground based EM surveys and or drilling programmes at its Overflow, Lewis Ponds and Cullerin projects during the coming quarter. 

Cash Position

At 31 March 2008, TRO’s cash balance amounted to $3,785,000 a decrease of approximately $1,631,000 since the end of the previous quarter. During the quarter, TRO’s cash burn rate has been maintained at elevated levels as work on the WZP BFS and development consents has continued in line with expectations.

Plans for the Current Quarter

·               Optimise the WRP feasibility study by:

o       Incorporating tailings from the North Tailings Dam into the production schedule;

o       Completing a technical peer review process that will be undertaken to ensure optimum outcomes in terms of engineering, procurement and contracting strategy;

o       Finalising a concentrate marketing strategy.

·               Finalise and commence implementation of a financing plan for the WRP.

·               Make WRP development decision.

·               Finalise underground metallurgical test work for inclusion in the WUP BFS.

·               Finalise documentation for the transfer of SML 20 and freehold property relevant to SML 20 to TRO.

·               Advance work programs associated with the Part 3A environmental approval process for the projects.

·               Commence front end engineering and design (“FEED”) requirements to enable the early placement of orders for long lead items of equipment.

Notes:

1.       TRO appointed Mr Robin Rankin of GeoRes as the competent person under the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves 2004 Edition (the ‘JORC code’), to conduct the Resource estimate. He also completed the Resource estimate for the WUP while employed with another consultancy group. GeoRes provides geological consulting services to the mineral exploration and mining industry. In accordance with the ASX Limited Listing Rules Appendix 5A, the information in the release prepared by TRO that relates to Mineral Resources or Ore Reserves is based on information compiled by Robin Rankin, a Member of the AusIMM, and registered as a Chartered Professional Geologist (CPGeo).  Robin Rankin is Principal Consulting Geologist and operator of GeoRes.  He has sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralization and type of deposit under consideration, and to the activity which he is undertaking, to qualify as a Competent Person as defined by JORC.  He consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

2.       In accordance with the ASX Limited Listing Rules Appendix 5A, the information in the report prepared by TRO that relates to Exploration Results is based on information compiled by Mr David Hobby, an employee of the Company, who is a Member of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr Hobby has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activities which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the ‘Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves’. Mr Hobby consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters in the form and context in which they appear based on information derived from his technical work.

3. With respect the exploration results quoted above, true widths are approximately 90% of down-hole widths. Analyses were obtained by crushing the whole core (typically 4-7kg) to -3.35mm. A sub-sample was obtained by rotary splitting and pulverised for analysis. Samples to be analysed for Cu, Pb, Zn are subjected to a mixed acid digest with ICP finish. Ag assays are obtained by mixed acid digest with AAS finish. Gold is analysed by fire assay with AAS finish.

This release was prepared by Tri Origin Exploration Ltd. from information supplied by its subsidiary Tri Origin Minerals Ltd (TRO). TRO’s news release can be accessed at www.asx.com.au under Listed Company Documents filed by TRO. TRO’s reporting of mineral resources, exploration results and qualifications of competent persons are in accordance with the 2004 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results and the JORC Code of December 17, 2004. Although these codes may differ in some regards to Canadian Standards including NI 43-101, it is the opinion of TOE management that statements made in the TRO report are, in all material regards, compliant with NI 43-101 standards.

For further information please contact:

Tri Origin Exploration Ltd.

Dr. Robert Valliant, President

Tel: (905) 294-9942

Web page: www.triorigin.com

E-mail: invest@triorigin.com

Tri Origin Exploration Ltd. is publicly listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the trading symbol TOE. Tri Origin has leveraged exposure to mineral discoveries in Australia through its 51% equity interest in its subsidiary, Tri Origin Minerals Ltd.; a publicly traded company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange under the symbol TRO.