Ruddock Creek Resource Tonnage Increased; JV Partners to Proceed with Year 3 Earn-In

Ruddock Creek Resource Tonnage Increased; JV Partners to Proceed with Year 3 Earn-In

Vancouver, BC - March 14, 2012 - Imperial Metals Corporation (TSX: III) reports the resource at Ruddock Creek has increased to an Indicated Resource of 4.654 million tonnes and an Inferred Resource of 5.382 million tonnes at a 4.0% Pb+Zn cutoff. This represents an Indicated Resource tonnage increase of 99% and an Inferred Resource increase of 261% from the 43-101 compliant resource released in the July 2009 report. The combined Indicated Resource contains 695.0 million pounds zinc and 142.0 million pounds lead. An additional 794.0 million pounds zinc and 155.0 million pounds lead are contained in the combined Inferred Resource category at a 4.0% Pb+Zn cut-off.

The new mineral resource is documented in the Technical Report Ruddock Creek Lead-Zinc Project - Kamloops Mining Division, British Columbia ⁽¹⁾ dated March 1, 2012 (“2012 Technical Report”). The 2012 Technical Report was prepared by Ronald G. Simpson, P.Geo., GeoSim Services Inc. and Jim Miller-Tait, P.Geo., Imperial Metals Corporation, both Qualified Persons for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 — Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Messrs. Simpson and Miller-Tait have reviewed the contents of this release.

The Company is pleased to announce it has received confirmation from joint venture partners Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd. and Itochu Corporation that they will proceed with their Year 3 option to earn an additional 15% interest in the Ruddock Creek property by spending an additional $6.0 million by March 31, 2013.

The combined Ruddock Creek mineral resources tabulated below are from the Upper E, Lower E and the Creek zones. This area covers only 2 kilometres of the known strike length from drilling, mapping and sampling of the 5 kilometre length of the Ruddock Creek Sulphide Horizon. Metal prices used in the determination of the base case cut-off grade were US$1.00/lb for zinc and US$1.00/lb for lead.

RUDDOCK CREEK TOTAL MINERAL RESOURCE [March 1/2012]

	INDICATED					INFERRED
Cut-Off Grade % Pb+Zn	Tonnes (000’s)	% Zn	% Pb	% comb Pb+Zn		Tonnes (000’s)	% Zn	% Pb	% comb Pb+Zn
3.0	5,450	6.20	1.28	7.48		6,253	6.17	1.21	7.38
4.0	4,654	6.77	1.38	8.16		5,382	6.69	1.31	8.00
5.0	3,773	7.48	1.53	9.01		4,562	7.22	1.41	8.64

Block model grade estimation was carried out using Gemcom Surpac(c) software. For the E zone, block grades were estimated using ordinary kriging constrained by zone domains. Three kriging passes with incremental search distances were implemented. Blocks estimated in the first two passes using a maximum anisotropic search distance of 31 metres were classified as indicated. Blocks estimated in the third pass using a maximum anisotropic search distance of 100 metres were classified as inferred. Grades for the Creek zone were estimated using the inverse distance squared method. Otherwise, all search parameters were the same as those for the Lower E zone.

The 2012 Technical Report contains tables providing the mineral resource estimates for each zone, and estimates for each resource category. The Company expects to file the 2012 Technical Report on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) within 10 days, following which the 2012 Technical Report will be available on the Company’s website.

RUDDOCK CREEK EXPLORATION UPDATE

The Creek zone is located 900 metres west of the E zone surface exposure. Diamond drilling carried out on the Creek zone in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2011 has shown this horizon to be continuous over 600 metres down dip and 300 metres along strike from the surface showing. The mineralization dips gently to the north, plunges gently to the west and is up to 12.6 metres thick. The Creek zone appears to be a fault offset and uplift of the E zone mineralization. The strike, dip, mineralization and the presence of a barren pyrrhotite horizon located approximately 50 metres below the targeted base metal horizon are all characteristic the both the Lower E and Creek zones.

The proposed 2012 exploration program will continue to expand the Lower E zone using two underground diamond drills and utilizing the existing workings and drill bays. A bulk sample for metallurgical testing will be excavated from the Lower E zone during the 2012 underground program as well. Surface drilling will continue to expand the Creek zone west and south. A helicopter supported drill program will be designed to continue to explore and follow up on the highly successful 2011 drill program in the V zone area, located 3 kilometres west of the E zone outcrop.

Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd. and Itochu Corporation have earned a 35% interest in the Ruddock Creek property by funding $14.0 million in exploration expenditures, and will earn an additional 15% working interest by funding a further $6.0 million in expenditures by March 31, 2013. At that time, the Ruddock Creek property will be held Imperial 50%, Mitsui 30% and Itochu 20%. Imperial will continue to operate the project through its wholly owned subsidiary Selkirk Metals Corp.

Jim Miller-Tait, P.Geo., the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 for the exploration program at Ruddock Creek, has reviewed this news release. Samples for the drilling reported at Ruddock Creek were analyzed at Acme Analytical Laboratories Ltd. in Vancouver BC. A full QA/QC program using blanks, standards and duplicates was maintained for all samples submitted to the labs.

Imperial is a mine development and operating company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Company’s key properties are two open pit mines: Mount Polley copper/gold mine and Huckleberry copper/molybdenum mine, both in British Columbia, as well as development stage Red Chris copper/gold property in British Columbia and Sterling gold property in Nevada.

Documents available on www.imperialmetals.com:
⁽¹⁾ Technical Report Ruddock Creek Lead-Zinc Project (available on website within 10 days of the date of this news release)

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Contacts: Brian Kynoch, President 604.669.8959; Patrick McAndless, Vice President Exploration 604.488.2665;
Sabine Goetz, Investor Relations 604.488.2657 // website: www.imperialmetals.com // email: info@imperialmetals.com

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING “FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION”:

THIS NEWS RELEASE CONTAINS “FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS” WITHIN THE MEANING OF CANADIAN AND UNITED STATES SECURITIES LAWS. EXCEPT FOR STATEMENTS OF FACT RELATING TO THE COMPANY, CERTAIN INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN CONSTITUTES FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS.

WHEN WE DISCUSS CURRENT AND FUTURE EXPLORATION PROGRAMS, EXPLORATION RESULTS, AND EXPECTATIONS OR ASSUMPTIONS BASED ON THOSE RESULTS, WE ARE MAKING STATEMENTS CONSIDERED TO BE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION OR FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS UNDER CANADIAN AND UNITED STATES SECURITIES LAWS. WE REFER TO THEM IN THIS NEWS RELEASE AS FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION. THE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION IN THIS NEWS RELEASE TYPICALLY INCLUDES WORDS AND PHRASES ABOUT THE FUTURE, SUCH AS: PLAN, EXPECT, FORECAST, INTEND, ANTICIPATE, ESTIMATE, BUDGET, SCHEDULED, BELIEVE, MAY, COULD, WOULD, MIGHT AND WILL.

WE CAN GIVE NO ASSURANCE THAT THE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION WILL PROVE TO BE ACCURATE. IT IS BASED ON A NUMBER OF ASSUMPTIONS MANAGEMENT BELIEVES TO BE REASONABLE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: THE CONTINUED OPERATION OF THE COMPANY’S MINING OPERATIONS, THAT THE MINING OPERATIONS WILL OPERATE AND THE MINING PROJECTS WILL BE COMPLETED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THEIR ESTIMATES AND ACHIEVE STATED PRODUCTION OUTCOMES, AND SUCH OTHER ASSUMPTIONS AND FACTORS AS SET OUT HEREIN. IT IS ALSO SUBJECT TO RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH OUR BUSINESS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: RISKS INHERENT IN THE MINING AND METALS BUSINESS; COMMODITY PRICE FLUCTUATIONS AND HEDGING; COMPETITION FOR MINING PROPERTIES; SALE OF PRODUCTS AND FUTURE MARKET ACCESS; MINERAL RESERVES AND RECOVERY ESTIMATES; CURRENCY FLUCTUATIONS; INTEREST RATE RISK; FINANCING RISKS; ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS; FOREIGN ACTIVITIES; LEGAL PROCEEDINGS; AND OTHER RISKS THAT ARE SET OUT IN OUR ANNUAL INFORMATION FORM AND MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION & ANALYSIS. IF OUR ASSUMPTIONS PROVE TO BE INCORRECT OR RISKS MATERIALIZE, OUR ACTUAL RESULTS AND EVENTS MAY VARY MATERIALLY FROM WHAT WE CURRENTLY EXPECT AS SET OUT IN THIS NEWS RELEASE.

WE RECOMMEND YOU REVIEW OUR ANNUAL INFORMATION FORM AND ANNUAL MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS, WHICH INCLUDE A DISCUSSION OF MATERIAL RISKS THAT COULD CAUSE ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM OUR CURRENT EXPECTATIONS. FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION IS DESIGNED TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND MANAGEMENT’S CURRENT VIEWS OF OUR NEAR AND LONGER TIME PROSPECTS, AND IT MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE FOR OTHER PURPOSES. WE WILL NOT NECESSARILY UPDATE THIS INFORMATION UNLESS WE ARE REQUIRED TO BY SECURITIES LAWS.

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