News Release: December 23rd, 2003 Drilling Intersects High-grade Gold at the Siwash Project, B.C. In September and October 2003 a 30-hole, 6570-meter diamond drill program was carried out to test the continuity of mineralisation at the company's wholly owned Siwash Gold Project. The deposit is located roughly two kilometres (km) south of Highway 97C and 45 km southeast of Merritt in the Okanagan area of Southern British Columbia. The mine is known for its very high gold grades and in the 1990s 51,750 ounces of gold were produced from 18,400 tons of quartz vein ore extracted from the B vein system in open pit and underground operations. The Siwash Project presently has an indicated resource of 87,700 oz (2,727,400 grams) gold in 61,300 tons and a probable reserve of 45,200 oz (1,405,700 grams) gold in 44,500 tons for a total of 142,000 ounces in 123,000 tons as calculated in 2000. This resource is developed on the WD and B vein systems and includes the Deep B shoot on the B vein system which is located immediately below the existing mine workings and can be accessed by extending the existing decline approximately 600 metres (m). It contains an inferred resource of 35,600 oz Au in 12,200 tons grading 2.925 oz/t. Preliminary results have been returned from the lab and a summary of drill intersections returning gold grades greater than 10 grams per tonne (0.29 ounces per ton) are listed below. True widths are calculated to a minimum width of 0.5 meters based on core to vein angles and weighted according to width and specific gravity. [view table +] Four vein systems have been identified and drilled in the Siwash area: the B system with a strike length of 900 m has been tested down dip to 320 m; the WD zone with a strike length of 650 m has been tested to 370 m down dip; the GCW zone with a strike length of 300 m has been tested to 130 m down dip and the Bullion Creek (BC) zone which has been tested with two holes to a depth of 75 m. The 2003 program extended the known perimeter of the WD zone in 50-meter step-outs from the existing drill grid both along strike and down dip. Six fill-in holes were drilled between existing 50-meter fences at the end of the program to confirm continuity of the structure and grade. Except for one hole that intersected an andesite dyke at the projected WD zone location, all holes returned good vein intersections. A new resource estimate incorporating results from the 2002 and 2003 drill programs, and complying with National Instrument 43-101 requirements, will be calculated by Giroux Consultants Ltd.. In 2001 a possible extension to the B and WD vein systems was found by trenching roughly two km along strike to the east, on the other side of an area of overburden cover. Grab samples of the vein material taken at surface returned averaged analyses of 0.922 oz/ton (31.6 grams/tonne) gold and 3.04 oz/ton silver (104.4 grams/tonne). A 0.5 by 0.5 m panel sample of the same vein taken in the wall of the trench returned 0.635 oz/ton gold (21.8 grams/tonne) and 0.96 oz/ton (32.9 grams/tonne) silver. This discovery was extremely significant as it adds two kilometres of prospective, unexplored strike length to the high-grade vein system. Knight Piesold Ltd. has been contracted to review options for tailings and mill sites in the Siwash area. Knight Piesold Ltd. is also carrying out dilution studies to determine pump rates and a time frame for dewatering the Siwash open pit and underground workings. The qualified person and supervisor for the 2003 exploration drill program is Wojtek Jakubowski, P. Geo. All samples were analyzed at Acme Analytical Labs in Vancouver using wet geochemical, fire assay and metallics techniques. Duplicate and blank samples were included in the sample shipments sent to Acme and confirmed procedural quality. Check assays were carried out by ALS Chemex Labs in Vancouver. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Duane Poliquin The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed nor accepted responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the contents of this news release which has been prepared by management. Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are forward looking statements as that term is defined in the private securities litigation reform act of 1995. Such forward -looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from estimated results. Such risks and uncertainties are detailed in the Company's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.