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Mercator Gold positive start to drilling in Australia

ANNEAN JOINT VENTURE
DRILLING RESULTS SURPRISE, JESS AND MAID MARION


LONDON - 2 March 2005 - Mercator Gold plc (AIM: MCR, MCRW) as operator of the
Annean Joint Venture announces that on-going drilling continues to intersect
significant high-grade gold mineralisation within broad zones of anomalous gold
at resource-extension targets in the Yaloginda region near Meekatharra, Western
Australia.

Highlights

Hole 04SUDD010 drilled from within the existing Surprise open pit
intersected 2m @ 22.7 g/t Au from 73m down-hole, about 80m below surface.
Hole 04SUDD010 and hole 05SUDD016, both drilled from the same collar
position but in different directions within the Surprise pit, returned 141m
@ 0.84 g/t Au and 177m @ 0.66 g/t Au, respectively.

Initial drilling at Jess, the third of three resource-extension
targets being drilled in the Yaloginda region, has provided initial
encouragement, demonstrating zones of anomalous gold, including 8m @ 1.9 g/t
Au from 106m downhole, 8m @ 1.2 g/t Au from 118m and 8m @ 0.9 g/t from 133m.
Drilling is continuing to test potential for high-grade shoots.

At Maid Marion, a brownfields exploration target 15km north of
Meekatharra, the Company has drilled 93 air-core regional targeting holes,
of which 13 holes returned gold grades over 0.5 g/t. These results, when
combined with drilling data by previous operators, demonstrate a major
corridor of gold mineralisation stretching for more than 8km between Maid
Marion and Five Mile Well. One diamond core hole drilled to test the
continuity of mineralisation, to test an IP anomaly and to obtain
structural geology data, returned six significant intersections including 2m
@ 15 g/t Au from 93m downhole.

The Company has completed a 1.25 million share placement to
institutional clients of Ocean Equities Ltd and Phillip Securities (UK) Ltd,
which boosts treasury and allows the Company to maintain an aggressive
drilling programme at Bluebird, Surprise, Jess and Maid Marion within the
Annean Joint Venture Area.

Surprise drilling

Surprise is the second of three resource-extension targets in the Yaloginda
mine area, immediately south of Meekatharra, Western Australia, to be drilled
by Mercator. The Company considers that each target has the potential to
contain in excess of 500,000 ounces of high-grade gold. The targets are located
within 4km of the St Barbara Mines Limited's Bluebird mill that is currently on
care and maintenance.

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Complete drill results for Holes 04SURCDD010, 04SURCDD13 and 05SURCDD016 are
presented in Table 1 below. (These results include the completion of Hole
04SURCDD13 that stopped at Christmas, with progress results announced in a
January press release.)

Holes 04SURCDD010 and 05SURCDD016 were collared on the haul road within the
existing small Surprise open cut and were drilled towards 247 degrees and 222
degrees respectively at -60 degrees oriented to go down at least 100m of host
porphyry before passing out into country high-Mg basalt on the west side of the
porphyry. Whilst drilled partly within the host rock, these holes are drilled
across the gold-bearing sub-horizontal quartz veins.

Hole 04SURCDD013 includes 6m @ 2.38 g/t Au, hole 04SUDD010 2m @ 22.73 g/t Au,
and hole 05SUDD016 8m @ 2.7 g/t Au. The average grade of the complete Hole
04SUDD010 is 141m @ 0.84 g/t Au and for 05SUDD016 177m @ 0.66 g/t Au. These
results demonstrate that Surprise has widespread anomalous gold, and within the
anomalous zones are substantial high-grade sections, such as those intersected
in 04SURCDD012 with 15m @ 45.1 g/t Au from 127m down-hole (announced January).

The Company is currently involved in a comprehensive analysis of the Surprise
drill results in the context of past drilling. Future drilling will target
repetitions of the two high-grade zones already recognised, and the depth
extensions of the porphyry plunging 45 degrees to south.

Jess drilling

Jess is the third of the Company's resource targets in the Yaloginda mine area.
Four reverse circulation holes of a ten hole programme have been completed.
Holes 04JSRC002 and 04JSRC010 intersected mineralisation as indicated in the
Table 2 below. Hole 04JSRC010 did not reach target depth as the rig suffered a
mechanical problem, but returned several notable intersections, including 8m @
1.94 g/t Au, and substantial widths of low grade mineralisation.

The Jess results provide initial encouragement, demonstrating wide zones of
anomalous gold. The company intends to complete its planned programme to test
potential for high-grade shoots.

Maid Marion drilling

At Maid Marion, the Company drilled 93 air-core holes as a regional targeting
tool, with 13 holes returning gold grades over 0.5 g/t. These results, when
combined with drilling data by previous operators, demonstrate a major corridor
of gold mineralisation stretching for 8km between Maid Marion and Five Mile
Well.

One diamond core hole has been drilled at Maid Marion to test the continuity of
mineralisation, test an IP anomaly and to obtain structural geology data. Hole
05MMDD001 had six significant intercepts including 2m @ 15 g/t Au from 93m down
the -60 degrees angled hole. This and other intersections in the hole are in
banded iron formation and mafic schist.

The Maid Marion results, detailed in Table 3 below, provide significant
encouragement, demonstrating substantial anomalous gold and the potential for
high-grade shoots.

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Future Exploration

Mercator has entered a contract with Mt Magnet Drilling Pty Limited for them to
supply not less than 12,000 metres of reverse circulation and diamond core
drilling during 2005. The next programme of drilling is scheduled to commence
in April, and will include:

Drilling for deep resource extensions at Bluebird;
On-going exploration of and deep target testing at Surprise;
Detailed exploration at Jess;
Systematic RC and air-core drilling of anomalies at Maid Marion, and deep
drilling beneath known mineralization;
Testing of regional exploration targets including Cassia and Tuckanarra.


Institutional Share Placement

The Company recently completed a 1.25 million share placement to institutional
clients of Ocean Equities Ltd and Phillip Securities (UK) Ltd, which boosts
treasury and allows the Company to maintain an aggressive drilling programme
under the Annean Joint Venture Area.

Ocean Equities Ltd has been appointed joint broker to the Company and has
introduced a number of new institutional shareholders to the Company, including
Artemis Investment Management Limited, which last week notified the Company of
an interest in 3,750,000 Ordinary Shares, representing 5.24 per cent of the
Company's issued Ordinary Share capital.

Corporate Developments

Dr Susan Vearncombe has been appointed as an executive director of Mercator
Gold plc.



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