Western Areas NL: 100,000 Tonnes Nickel Concentrate Exported From Esperance

PERTH, AUSTRALIA--(Marketwire - June 7, 2011) -

THIS NEWS RELEASE IS NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE U.S.

The Board of Western Areas (TSX:WSA)(ASX:WSA) is pleased to announce an important milestone for the Company. Since the first shipment ten months ago, Western Areas has exported over 100,000 tonnes of high grade nickel concentrate from Esperance Port to Jinchuan in China. This represents a gross value of over US$300 million based on average nickel prices since shipping commenced.

Nickel concentrate is transported from Western Areas' processing plant at Forrestania to Esperance in sealed containers which are shipped directly to China. Sealed containers meet the highest environmental standards for handling and transporting concentrate and Western Areas now has over 1200 containers available for exporting.

In addition to the contract to sell a total 25,000 tonnes of nickel in concentrate to Jinchuan, Western Areas has a contract to sell 10,000 tpa nickel in concentrate to BHP Billiton. There is also a separate agreement to sell oxide and transitional ore from the Spotted Quoll mine to Minara Resources in Western Australia.

High levels of nickel production were again reported from the Forrestania operations in May. Over 3,500 tonnes of nickel in ore were mined from Flying Fox and Spotted Quoll and 2,379 tonnes of nickel in concentrate were produced for the month. Production details will be included in the June quarterly activities report which is expected to be released in mid July.

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Managing Director, Mr Julian Hanna said, "The production and logistics teams at Western Areas are justifiably proud of their involvement in what is now a significant new export industry for Australia. The fact that this is being done to the highest possible environmental standards using Western Areas' distinctive yellow containers is a credit to everyone involved".

Mr Hanna added, "We appreciate the support of our staff, transport and shipping contractors, the Esperance community and Jinchuan in achieving this important milestone."

DISCLAIMER AND QA-QC STATEMENT:

The information within this report as it relates to mineral resources and mine development activities is based on information compiled by Mr Dan Lougher and Mr Julian Hanna of Western Areas NL. Mr Lougher and Mr Hanna are members of AusIMM and are full time employees of the Company. Mr Lougher and Mr Hanna have sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which they are undertaking to qualify as Competent Persons as defined in the 2004 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves.' Mr Lougher and Mr Hanna consent to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on the information in the form and context in which it appears.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENT:

This release contains certain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's ability to control or predict which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements.

This announcement does not include reference to all available information on the Company or the Forrestania Nickel Project and should not be used in isolation as a basis to invest in Western Areas. Any potential investors should refer to Western Area's other public releases and statutory reports and consult their professional advisers before considering investing in the Company.

For Purposes of Clause 3.4 (e) in Canadian instrument 43-101, the Company warrants that Mineral Resources which are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.