Sterling Mining Names New CEO

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho, Jan. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sterling Mining
Company (OTC Bulletin Board: SRLM / FSE: SMX) is pleased to announce the
appointment of John P. Ryan as President and Chief Executive Officer and Ron
Ho as Corporate Secretary and Treasurer, both effective immediately. Mr. Ryan
will succeed Ken Berscht as interim President, who has resigned but will
remain on the Board of Directors. Mr. Ryan was also named to the Board of
Directors of the Company.
John P. Ryan has extensive experience with development-stage companies,
most recently as the Chairman of U.S. Silver Corporation from June 2006 until
October, 2006, also serving as Chief Financial Officer of U.S. Silver
Corporation until May 1, 2007. Mr. Ryan remains on the board of U.S. Silver
and is one of three co-founders of the Company. Mr. Ryan is currently Chief
Executive Officer of Gold Crest Mines, Inc., an exploration company focused on
gold projects in Alaska and Central Idaho, and a Director of Silver Verde May
Mining Company, Inc., a development stage company with exploration projects
primarily in the east end of the Coeur d'Alene Mining District. Mr. Ryan
attended the University of Idaho where he received a B.S. degree in Mining
Engineering, and he also received a Juris Doctor from Boston College.
Mr. Ho has 10 years of corporate financial experience and is currently the
Chief Financial Officer of SNS Silver Corporation. He was most recently an
equity analyst at Raymond James Ltd., where he was responsible for sector
institutional research. Mr. Ho is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor
of Commerce degree from the University of British Columbia.
Mr. Ryan stated, "I'm looking forward to the hands-on challenge of
continuing the renewal of the Sunshine Mine. The Company has experienced
significant challenges; however, the Sunshine Mine remains a promising silver
project with significant exploration and development potential. The presence
of the existing infrastructure, shafts, milling facility, and other equipment
make this project a highly viable operation in the future, particularly under
more favorable market conditions. I am excited to chart a path forward for the
Company and the mining operation. I would also like to thank Mr. Ken Berscht
for serving as interim President and I look forward to working with him during
the transition and as a Board member in the future."
Ken Berscht, Sterling's interim President said, "We're delighted to have
secured someone of John's stature and experience as our next President and
CEO. This appointment reflects the board's focus on advancing the company
forward and we are extremely pleased with his appointment."
Additional appointments to the Board of Directors
David Greenway and Andrew Grundman have been appointed to Sterling
Mining's Board of Directors.
Mr. Greenway is currently the President and CEO of SNS Silver Corp. He was
instrumental in the acquisition of the Crescent Mine in the Coeur d'Alene
District. The Crescent Mine is immediately adjacent to and west of the
Sunshine Mine. Mr. Greenway attended Bournemouth University in the United
Kingdom where he studied Accounting and Finance.
Andrew Grundman provides business consultation services to various
precious and base metal operations throughout the western United States,
Canada and Mexico. From 2002 until 2003, Mr. Grundman was the General Manager
for the Sunshine Mine in Idaho. Mr. Grundman, through collaboration with the
Idaho Attorney General's Office, the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality
and the Environmental Protection Agency, was able to negotiate the transfer of
one of the Sunshine Mine's tailings ponds to the State of Idaho for use in
safely containing contaminated material from a nearby Superfund site. Prior to
this, Mr. Grundman worked at the California Governor's Office of Emergency
Services. Mr. Grundman holds a Juris Doctor Degree from McGeorge School of Law
- University of the Pacific, and has been an active member of the State Bar of
California since 2002.
To facilitate the appointment of Mr. Ryan, Mr. Greenway and Mr. Grundman
the Board of Directors has expanded the Board from seven (7) to nine (9).
About Sterling Mining Company
Sterling Mining is a mineral resource development and exploration company.
The Company's flagship project is the Sunshine Mine in North Idaho's prolific
Coeur d'Alene Mining District. The Sunshine Mine is the largest single
historic producer of silver in the United States producing over 360 million
ounces of silver from 1884 until present. Sterling Mining has been exploring,
rehabilitating and engaging in limited production at the mine since leasing
the project in 2003. Shares of Sterling Mining Company trade on the OTCBB
under the symbol "SLRM", and also on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the
trading symbol "SMX".
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, visit the Company's website at
www.SterlingMining.com or contact:
Sterling Mining Company

John Ryan, Chief Executive Officer
Tel: (404) 418-6203

Monique Hayes, Marketing/Communications
Tel: (208) 666-4070 ext. 301

To receive Sterling news via email, please email mhayes@sterlingmining.com
and specify "SRLM news" in the subject line.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
THIS NEWS RELEASE CONTAINS "FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION" WITHIN THE
MEANING OF THE UNITED STATES "PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT" OF
1995 AND APPLICABLE CANADIAN SECURITIES LEGISLATION. STATEMENTS CONTAINING
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION EXPRESS, AS AT THE DATE OF THIS NEWS RELEASE, THE
COMPANY'S PLANS, ESTIMATES, FORECASTS, PROJECTIONS, EXPECTATIONS, OR BELIEFS
AS TO FUTURE EVENTS OR RESULTS AND THE COMPANY DOES NOT INTEND, AND DOES NOT
ASSUME ANY OBLIGATION TO, UPDATE SUCH STATEMENTS CONTAINING THE FORWARD-
LOOKING INFORMATION. GENERALLY, FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION CAN BE IDENTIFIED
BY THE USE OF FORWARD-LOOKING TERMINOLOGY SUCH AS "PLANS", "PROJECTS" OR
"PROJECTED", "EXPECTS" OR "DOES NOT EXPECT", "IS EXPECTED", "ESTIMATES",
"FORECASTS", "SCHEDULED", "INTENDS", "ANTICIPATES" OR "DOES NOT ANTICIPATE",
OR "BELIEVES", OR VARIATIONS OF SUCH WORDS AND PHRASES, OR STATEMENTS THAT
CERTAIN ACTIONS, EVENTS OR RESULTS "MAY", "CAN", "COULD", "WOULD", "MIGHT" OR
"WILL BE TAKEN", "OCCUR" OR "BE ACHIEVED". STATEMENTS CONTAINING FORWARD-
LOOKING INFORMATION INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO, STATEMENTS WITH RESPECT
TO TIMING, BUDGET AND EXPENDITURES FOR CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES, THE EXPECTED
RESULTS FROM EXPLORATION ACTIVITIES, THE ECONOMIC VIABILITY OF THE DEVELOPMENT
OF NEWLY DISCOVERED ORE BODIES, THE ESTIMATION OF MINERAL RESERVES AND
RESOURCES, FUTURE PRODUCTION LEVELS, EXPECTATIONS REGARDING MINE PRODUCTION
COSTS AND PROJECTED CASH COSTS PER OUNCE, THE ADEQUACY OF CAPITAL OR THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR ADDITIONAL CAPITAL, EXPECTATIONS REGARDING FUTURE SILVER
PRICES, AND THE COMPANY'S COMMITMENT TO, AND PLANS FOR DEVELOPING, NEWLY
DISCOVERED AND EXISTING MINERALIZED STRUCTURES.
STATEMENTS CONTAINING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION INVOLVE KNOWN AND
UNKNOWN RISKS, UNCERTAINTIES AND OTHER FACTORS THAT MAY CAUSE THE ACTUAL
RESULTS, LEVEL OF ACTIVITY, PERFORMANCE OR ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE COMPANY'S
SILVER AND ITS OPERATIONS TO BE MATERIALLY DIFFERENT FROM THOSE EXPRESSED OR
IMPLIED BY SUCH STATEMENTS. SUCH FACTORS INCLUDE, AMONG OTHERS, RISKS RELATED
TO TECHNOLOGICAL AND OPERATIONAL NATURE OF THE COMPANY'S BUSINESS, CHANGES IN
LOCAL GOVERNMENT LEGISLATION, TAXATION OR THE POLITICAL OR ECONOMIC
ENVIRONMENT, THE ACTUAL RESULTS OF CURRENT EXPLORATION ACTIVITIES, CONCLUSIONS
OF ECONOMIC EVALUATIONS, CHANGES IN PROJECT PARAMETERS TO DEAL WITH
UNANTICIPATED ECONOMIC FACTORS, FUTURE PRICES OF SILVER, GOLD AND BASE METALS,
INCREASED COMPETITION IN THE MINING INDUSTRY FOR PROPERTIES, EQUIPMENT,
QUALIFIED PERSONNEL, AND THEIR RISING COSTS, UNPREDICTABLE RISKS AND HAZARDS
RELATING TO THE OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF OUR MINES OR PROPERTIES, THE
SPECULATIVE NATURE OF EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT, FLUCTUATIONS IN THE PRICE
FOR NATURAL GAS, FUEL OIL AND OTHER KEY SUPPLIES, AS WELL AS THOSE FACTORS
DESCRIBED IN THE SECTION ["RISK RELATED TO THE COMPANY'S BUSINESS"] CONTAINED
IN THE COMPANY'S MOST RECENT [FORM 40F/ANNUAL INFORMATION FORM] FILED WITH THE
SEC AND CANADIAN PROVINCIAL SECURITIES REGULATORY AUTHORITIES. ALTHOUGH THE
COMPANY HAS ATTEMPTED TO IDENTIFY IMPORTANT FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE ACTUAL
RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE CONTAINED IN FORWARD-LOOKING
STATEMENTS, THERE MAY BE OTHER FACTORS THAT CAUSE RESULTS TO BE MATERIALLY
DIFFERENT FROM THOSE ANTICIPATED, DESCRIBED, ESTIMATED, ASSESSED OR INTENDED.
THERE CAN BE NO ASSURANCE THAT ANY STATEMENTS CONTAINING FORWARD-LOOKING
INFORMATION WILL PROVE TO BE ACCURATE AS ACTUAL RESULTS AND FUTURE EVENTS
COULD DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE ANTICIPATED IN SUCH STATEMENTS.
ACCORDINGLY, READERS SHOULD NOT PLACE UNDUE RELIANCE ON STATEMENTS CONTAINING
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION.
SOURCE Sterling Mining Company

John Ryan, Chief Executive Officer, +1-404-418-6203; Monique Hayes,
Marketing-Communications, +1-208-666-4070 Ext. 301, mhayes@sterlingmining.com