November 9, 2000:   Sudbury, Ontario - Houston Lake Mining Inc. ("Houston Lake") is pleased to update results of geological compilation of detailed mapping and sampling on the Pakeagama Lake Rare Metals Project. Houston Lake is in the second option year of a three year agreement and is required to expend a further $40,000 in exploration, make $70,000 in cash payments, and issue 75,000 shares to complete the Company’s 100 percent option on the 632 hectare Pakeagama Lake property in the Red Lake Mining District of Ontario. The 100 percent earn in is subject to a 2.5 percent Net Smelter Royalty.

Detailed mapping of the large exposure of pegmatite has provided a context for channel sample results announced on May 31, 2000. The detailed mapping program indicates two separate Wall Zones flank the 10 metre wide Core Zone to the north and south. The Northern Wall Zone is exposed over a 13 metre width and has at least a 15 metre strike while the Southern Wall Zone is at least 8 metres wide and strikes for 40 metres and is open in both directions. The Northern Wall Zone channel sample results were taken perpendicular to strike and returned: 344 g/t tantalum oxide, 0.90 percent rubidium oxide, 1776 g/t cesium oxide, 68.9 g/t tin, 131.9 g/t niobium oxide, 1.34 percent lithium oxide, 25.9 g/t thallium, and 42.2 g/t gallium over 11 metres. The Southern Wall Zone includes two 20 cm channel samples which also returned economically significant values averaging 406 g/t tantalum oxide, 1.15 percent rubidium oxide, 2580 g/t cesium oxide, 57.7 g/t tin, 118.7 g/t niobium oxide, 2.40 percent lithium oxide, 57.7 g/t thallium, and 74.9 g/t gallium. Germanium and beryllium results are pending. A total of 4.8 metres of the 10 metre wide Core Zone was previously tested and returned economically significant values ranging from 4.33 to 4.79 percent lithium oxide.

The Pakeagama Lake Wall Zone channel sample results compare favourably to Sons of Gwalia Limited’s Wodgina mine which is located in Western Australia. The Wodgina mine is a world-class tantalum-only producer containing 35 million tonnes averaging 402 g/t tantalum oxide.

Since 1998, field-based and laboratory data amassed from the Pakeagama Lake pegmatite by the Ontario Geological Survey ("OGS", a provincial government agency) and The Open University in the U. K., include approximately 2000 electron microprobe analyses, 50 bulk chemical analyses, 21 analyses of potassium feldspar and X-ray diffraction mineral identification work conducted upon 30 samples. The results of these studies have been published by the OGS (Open File Report 6000, Summary of field Work and Other Activities, November, 1999, pp.26-1 to 26-12). Additional analytical work by the Open University and the OGS is currently underway and is expected to be published in the coming months. The Summary Report on Pakeagama Lake has been reproduced on the Company’s web site. The Report concludes:

"The detailed documentation of a variety of tantalum-rich minerals coupled with the presence of pollucite renders the Pakeagama Lake pegmatite and adjoining area one of the best targets for tantalum and cesium exploration in northwestern Ontario."

The Pakeagama Lake pegmatite is already the second largest complex type, petalite sub-type pegmatite in Ontario with 260 metres in strike length and 30 to 70 metres in width exposed at surface. The pegmatite has considerable potential for expansion of its size as the pegmatite is open along strike in both directions and is flanked by a 120 metre wide lithium-cesium anomaly. The anomaly is interpreted to be due to more rare metal pegmatite buried underneath. Sampling of an outcrop on the shore of Pakeagama Lake (300 metres along strike to the southeast) returned 642 g/t tantalum oxide, 0.09 percent rubidium oxide, 408 g/t cesium oxide, 6.5 g/t tin, 64.1 g/t niobium oxide, 0.03 percent lithium oxide, 6.5 g/t thallium, and 44.9 g/t gallium and indicates that the rare metals mineralizing system may extend for over 560 metres. Houston Lake’s management believes that the combination of high rare metals concentration and large size are prerequisites for a potential economic rare metal deposit. A $500,000 exploration program has been independently recommended and would involve line-cutting, geophysics, soil and lithogeochemistry, geological mapping and diamond drilling.

Houston Lake management views the political environment of Ontario and especially northern Ontario as one of the best places in the world for exploration and development. A ten year tax moratorium for northern mines was recently announced by the Ontario government. The vicinity of Pakeagama Lake is serviced by a winter road which passes within ten kilometres of the property. There is presently an initiative underway to upgrade this road to all weather status.

Tantalum markets are currently experiencing severe shortages of tantalum powder used in capacitors in various electronic equipment and cell phones and are in turn causing these high technology items to backorder. Tantalum scrap prices have recently escalated by over 350 percent in the past year to $265 per pound due to high demand and shortages in supply. Recent mine expansions in Australia moderated by a decline in secondary tantalum supply from tin production are not keeping pace with demand. This shortfall is expected to intensify due to new applications such as sputtering (a coating method used in fiberoptics to increase transmission quality). Sputtering is expected to increase from its current annual needs of 90,000 pounds of tantalum to 400,000 pounds over the next few years. Tantalum is used in a number of applications, including capacitors which are used extensively in the electronics industry for cell phones, computers, avionics, automotive and in communications technology. The world demand for tantalum has grown at ten percent per year since 1992 to approximately 1800 tonnes per year. The implications of a new and secure source of tantalum supply from North America would be extremely important to the high technology industry and the Defense Logistics Agency of the U.S. military which has had to draw down strategic reserves to meet current demand from chip manufacturers and the fiberoptic communications industry.

A new application for cesium, cesium formate, has been successfully tested as a drilling and completion fluid in deep sea oil and gas drilling. Cesium formate’s well bore performance and health, safety and environmental performance are stated as being superior to traditional brines and may become a standard in an industry striving to use "best practice technologies". The specialty fluid has been successfully used by Shell UK Exploration and Production, Total Oil Marine and Elf Exploration UK in the North Sea. Cesium shipments have been reported to bring as high as US$1000/tonne for 24 percent cesium oxide.

Lithium from silicate sources is used primarily in the specialty glass industry and is reported to sell for US $340/ton for spodumene concentrate (7.5 percent lithium oxide, 1998). Rubidium is used primarily in ceramics applications for spark plugs and insulators. Shipments of rubidium concentrate reached 60,000 tonnes in 1998 with prices of US$800/tonne for lepidolite and US$120/tonne for rubidium feldspar.

Germanium is used in the manufacture of electronic and optical devices. Approximately 40% of the market is devoted to fiber optics end uses. Prices are quoted as US$1700/kg (1998) with annual consumption estimated at 30,000 Kg per year and growing. Thallium has been recently identified as being present in the pegmatite. New applications in semiconductor and transmission equipment and radiation detection devices has seen thallium’s price more than double to US$580 per pound in 1998.

Houston Lake is actively exploring for rare metals, platinum group metals and gold in northwestern Ontario. The common shares of Houston Lake Mining Inc. trade through the facilities of the Canadian Venture Exchange under the symbol HLM. Houston Lake Mining Inc. has a total of 12,972,432 common shares issued and outstanding. For further information on all of the Company’s projects, we invite you to visit us at www.houstonlakemining.com.


For more information, please contact:

E. Grayme Anthony B.Sc., P. Geo., F.G.A.C., M. B. A.

Tel: (705) 897-7622
Fax: (705) 897-7618
e-mail: houston@vianet.on.ca
Web Site: www.houstonlakemining.com

The Canadian Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the information contained herein.

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