ON INTERIM RESULTS FOR 6 MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2000

I write at a period of high activity in the Minmet Group and at a time of contrasting fortunes in our major exploration provinces. In Brazil we have started drilling our target sites in the Cuiaba Basin; we have applied to the Brazilian authorities for permission to commence bulk sampling for gold at a number of previously worked mine sites also around Cuiaba and we have had an encouraging start to our exploration for gold and diamonds at Coromandel. We are investigating a number of new projects in Brazil and in the Americas generally. In Portugal we have suffered a set back due to the refusal of the Minister for Industry and Energy to ratify our mining permit in spite of previous assurances. This decision is currently the subject of an appeal to the Minister and may result in a further judicial appeal. This aside we have made significant progress on Valongo Gondomar but we are seeking confirmation that the obstacles placed in our path on Castromil will not be repeated. To date we have not received suitable comfort in this regard.

We have not advanced major funds to Crediton Minerals in the six month period under review due to our higher priorities elsewhere, however we do plan to continue our exploration activities in the months ahead. We are also involved in detailed discussions with partners on the development and siting of a pilot plant to test our proprietary thiourea technology prior to commercialising the process.

Given that the gold price is expected to sit in a range of US$270 to US$290 there is likely to be continuing emphasis by the Major gold companies on reducing production costs and they will, in order to preserve their margins, be seeking to develop low cost gold projects. At the same time exploration activity has been curtailed over the last number of years and declining reserves will have to be replaced. We are working to prove up the low cost reserves that are required by our industry and we believe that this strategy is the correct one at this time.

I stated in the 1999 Interim Statement that we had official government support for our efforts in Portugal, however the events of the last twelve months where we had initially been granted an exploitation licence for Castromil in November 1999 only for it to be withdrawn in May 2000 has undermined my confidence in the Portuguese authorities. We are engaged in discussions with a number of parties in Portugal to come to a conclusion on Castromil, which should allow us to get on with our work on Valongo Gondomar.

Despite the set backs associated with Castromil, our Portuguese team under Dr Carlos Nascimento, has made significant strides in the Valongo Gondomar strike zone and we are now ready to drill up to three large targets on this site. These developments at any other time would be significant, however our reticence in articulating their importance is directly related to the problems encountered at Castromil. Although the funds for Valongo Gondomar drilling have been allocated they will not be advanced until we have a clear understanding of how the Portuguese Government will allow us to proceed. We are being advised that our projects at Valongo Gondomar and Mirandela are fully supported by the Portuguese authorities, however we will need some additional comfort before committing to a large drilling programme. Mineral exploration at the best of times is a high risk venture and all exploration companies need the security of being able to exploit proven reserves once compliance measures are completed concerning all laws and regulations.

A huge programme of work has been completed over the last 18 months by David Carmichael and his team, culminating in the selection of a number of key drilling targets for gold throughout our concession in the Cuiaba Basin. The initial drilling programme will concentrate on 2 or 3 of the 10 key priority areas. The drilling programme is planned to continue until the end of the year with at least 5,000 meters of drilling to be completed. The drilling programme will be ongoing into 2001. Two drill rigs are on site with full back up infrastructure and an appropriate chain of custody handling system established under the supervision of SGS. Assay results should become available during October 2000. The programme is ahead of schedule due to the effectiveness of the geophysical studies carried out on our behalf by Quantec Inc of Canada since November 1999. Recovery of core is excellent (95% to 100%). The first hole of 250 meters has just been completed. The company infrastructure has been strengthened following the commissioning of a new secure core and sample handling storage facility. The new facility is capable of storing a minimum of 15,000 meters of core.

The additional resources in both financial and manpower terms applied to this exploration effort has resulted in a small delay to the commissioning of the bulk sampling plant. This plant is now being assembled in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais and should be operational by end of September assuming the necessary licences have been issued by the authorities.

In June we reported that we had entered into an option arrangement to acquire a number of diamond concessions along the Santo Ignacio River ("Option Area") centred on the town of Coromandel, in the state of Minas Gerais. We have completed a detailed due diligence exercise under the direction of Dr Tony Gallon in order to evaluate the potential of this Option Area. Our initial findings were sufficiently positive to conclude that not only are diamonds in both industrial and gem quality to be found in the Option Area but there is also the potential to produce several by-products: ilmenite (for paint pigments), garnets (for abrasives) as well as gold. A systematic exploration programme has been planned for the next 8 months and will be supervised by Dr. Tony Gallon.

We are reviewing a number of new gold, diamond and PGM opportunities in Brazil and in the Americas generally and we intend to leverage our existing infrastructure and foothold in Cuiaba and Coromandel to enlarge our property portfolio in this region over the next period with appropriate projects. We have strengthened our staff resources in this crucial function of new project development with the appointment of Dr, Tony Gallon to the newly created position of Manager, New Project Development.

We have announced that a strategic review of Crediton Minerals plc was been undertaken and a specific project involving this company is being considered at the moment. This review has not yet been concluded and therefore any further details at this time would be premature.

Minmet will however continue its commitment to the Crediton Trough gold prospect and the Exploration Department will be implementing further exploration programmes over this licence area in the next period. This will concentrate more on regional exploration, stream sediment and soil sampling and may not necessarily include a drilling programme. The objective of the programme is to expand the company's understanding of the area and to highlight new drilling targets. The knowledge gained from the encouraging results obtained from the previous drilling at Thorverton, located on the north-east part of the licence area will be applied.

We are in active discussion with our partners to establish a demonstration plant where the technology can be fully tested. At the present time we are looking at establishing such a facility either in Dublin or in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. We are conscious that progress on this has been slow, but with the goodwill and support expected from our partners, we are determined to fast track its development in the next 6 to 9 months.

Authoriszor Inc (formerly Toucan Gold Corporation Inc.) exercised warrants over 7.7 million shares which raised over IR£800,000 in May 2000. These warrants were issued as part of the transaction to acquire Mineradora de Bauxita Limitada in 1999. These funds, together with the funds raised in September 1999, have contributed to a strong treasury at 30 June 2000 of IR£11.8m.

I am delighted to welcome Carlos Lins onto the Board as non-executive Deputy Chairman. He is a senior figure in the mining industry in South America and his experience will be invaluable to the Group particularly in implementing its growth plans in the region.

Profit on ordinary activities after taxation of IR£4,060 for the six months ended 30 June 2000 is an improvement over 1999 which showed a loss after taxation of IR£43,122. Operating expenses for the period of IR£275,932 are higher than those for 1999 of IR£63,138 due to a significant expansion of our activities allied to the increased costs of maintaining a much larger shareholder base. The added costs have been offset by deposit interest of IR£280,036 which is well up on the same period in 1999.

Mineral exploration is by its nature a high risk business. However in order to assist in reducing these risks we employ and incentivise very good people throughout our organisation whose approach to mineral exploration is of the highest professional standard and we use state of the art technology to assist us in the discovery of potentially large world class assets. We are at a crucial stage of our development especially with our Cuiaba project and we look forward with measured confidence that our work will yield us success.