Orbite's Pilot Production Facility in Cap-Chat Becomes Operational

MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwire - Feb. 2, 2011) - Exploration Orbite (TSX VENTURE:ORT.A) has begun operations at its pilot production facility in Cap-Chat, Quebec. This event is both a critical turning point in Orbite's history and a major step towards the production of the company's first ton of alumina. In addition, this stage of the project was completed on budget and ahead of schedule.

The team's next priority is to complete the production of the first ton of alumina.

"I'm very impressed by everything our team has accomplished to date and I'm completely confident that our efforts will soon be rewarded with the first ton of alumina produced at the pilot production facility," stated company president Richard Boudreault.

Mr. Boudreault was delighted to hear the comments of the engineers working on the pilot production facility and the production process launch. According to professional engineer Dominique Morin, VP of engineering at SENECA Experts Conseil, the engineering consultation firm hired by Orbite to handle the pilot project: "We started up the facility and launched operations in record time, thanks in large part to the outstanding teamwork and dedication of the team put together by Orbite's management. This facility is now ready to carry out its primary mission of demonstrating of an innovative process to extract alumina from aluminous clays."

The pilot production facility will make it possible to optimize process parameters and production costs and develop the design for a proposed full-scale production facility. It will also serve to evaluate and improve economic parameters and minimize technological risks.

Operating this facility will play a key role in demonstrating the economic realm of the Grande-Vallée project and Orbite's patented process.

Next steps

The next step is to continue the successful operation of the pilot production facility and the completion of feasibility studies as required by Regulation 43-101, leading to the design of a facility capable of producing at least 500 tons/day of metallurgical alumina as well as the supporting mine operations. Once the pilot production facility has completed its mandate, it will be adapted to produce ultra-pure alumina.

About Orbite

Exploration Orbite V.S.P.A. Inc. owns 100% of the mining rights on the Grande-Vallée property, the site of an aluminous clay deposit located 32 km northeast of Murdochville in the Gaspé region. The company also owns the rights to a process for extracting alumina from aluminous clays, a process that is the subject of a pending international patent and already under patent in Canada and the United States. www.explorationorbite.com

Technical Sheet

Orbite Exploration V.S.P.A. Inc.

Why is Alumina Important?

The world needs aluminum, the second most used metal after steel. Aluminum is made from aluminum oxide, commonly called alumina. World production of aluminum was 37 million metric tons in 2009, and Alcoa, which had projected a growth rate of 6% per year through the decade, reported 13% growth in demand for 2010 and now forecasts 12% growth for 2011.

Each ton of aluminum requires approximately two tons of alumina. So millions of tons of metallurgical alumina must be imported each year over thousands of kilometers to supply Quebec's aluminum smelters.

The Global Ultra Pure Alumina Market

Eight percent of the alumina produced is sold on markets other than aluminum metal markets. This represented 6.2 million tons in 2008. Orbite intends to focus on the highest value added segment of this non- metallurgical alumina market, approximately one thousand tons of ultra-pure―99.99% pure and over―alumina a year.

Ultra-pure alumina is used to make artificial sapphires and rubies for fiber optic communications systems, substrates for integrated circuits and light emitting diodes (LEDs), the coating of missile nose cones, ultra- pure nanomaterials, and bioceramics for prostheses and implants. Prices for ultra-pure alumina are much higher than for metallurgical grade, but order sizes are smaller.

The Orbite Solution: Produce Alumina in Quebec from Aluminous Clay Using a Unique Process

It has long been known that alumina can be refined from aluminous clay deposits, but this possibility is rarely exploited because the quality and cost of the resulting alumina has not been competitive with that of alumina produced from bauxite using the Bayer process.

Orbite has a large homogenous and strategically located clay deposit in Quebec with an average grade of 23% to 26% alumina, as well as a unique patented process to produce metallurgical alumina from aluminous clay. This can potentially replace two to three billion dollars of imported alumina and supply high value added, ultra-pure alumina to the world market as well as other high value substances in the clay, including certain rare earths and semiconductor materials.

The development of a competitive domestic alumina supply is of great strategic importance for the Quebec aluminum industry, which is dependent on the security of offshore resources. Replacing imported alumina would increase Quebec's GDP by up to 3%.

The Grande Vallée Property

Orbite owns the mineral rights to the 3,500 hectare Grande Vallée property, which is strategically located 32 km north of Murdochville in the Gaspé region of Quebec. The property is close to both a major road and a year-round deep water port on the St. Lawrence River. Exploration campaigns indicate that a large part of the property is covered in homogeneous aluminous clay and shale.

A Pilot Production Facility is Being Commissioned

Having obtained approval of the environmental assessment submitted for the pilot project by the Canada Economic Development Agency for Quebec Regions, Orbite purchased an existing modern building in the village of Cap-Chat in the Gaspé region to house its pilot plant.

The $7.4 million plant was financed through $1.7 million in private investment, $1 million from Aluminerie Alouette Inc., and Quebec and Canadian federal government programs.

Orbite has already shipped 400 tons of ore from its Grande Vallée mine to the Cap-Chat site and processed it to supply the pilot production facility.

The pilot production facility will be operated to prove large-scale feasibility, optimize process parameters and production costs, and determine the design of a projected full-scale production plant. The pilot production facility will also serve to evaluate the economic parameters and minimize technological risks.

And Then―A Full-Scale Alumina Plant

The next steps are the successful operation of the pilot production facility and the completion of feasibility studies required under Regulation 43-101, leading to the design of a plant capable of producing over 500 tons of metallurgical alumina per day together with the mining operations required to meet Orbite's needs. When the pilot production facility has completed its mission, it will be adapted to produce ultra-pure alumina.