Keegan Hires Engineer to Lead Esaase Gold Project Development

* Reuters is not responsible for the content in this press release.

Tue Jul 7, 2009 1:17pm EDT

  VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Jul 07 (MARKET WIRE) -- 
Keegan Resources Inc. ("Keegan") (TSX: KGN)(AMEX: KGN) is pleased to
announce that Maurice Tagami, P.Eng has joined the Company to be its Vice
President, Project Development. Mr. Tagami has a degree from the
University of British Columbia in metallurgical engineering, is a
registered professional engineer in the province of British Columbia and
has over 28 years experience in mine development and operations. Mr.
Tagami has played a significant metallurgical and project management role
in numerous open pit, underground and heap leach projects in North and
South America, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Africa, Europe and Asia and
has actively participated in several plant commissioning and start-up
periods. Recently, Mr. Tagami held the position of senior project manager
for Canico Resource Corp. on the Onca Puma project, a large greenfields
nickel laterite smelter project in Para state, Brazil where he was
involved in the project from exploration through scoping and feasibility
studies and basic engineering.

    As Vice President, Project Development for Keegan, Mr. Tagami will
oversee all design, geotechnical, metallurgical, hydrological, mining
engineering and other development work required on Keegan's Esasse
Project in southwest Ghana. He will be responsible for the planning,
design and budget for any pre-feasibility and/or feasibility studies and
subsequent development that Keegan undertakes on its properties.

    President and CEO Dan McCoy states: "Keegan is very pleased to have a
dedicated and experienced mine development professional join its
management team. We believe that Maurice is a key addition to a growing
company that continues to add significant value to the world class gold
resource that is developing at our Esaase Project."

    About Keegan Resources - Keegan is a junior gold company offering
investors the opportunity to share ownership in the rapid exploration and
development of high quality pure gold assets. The Company is focused on
its wholly owned flagship Esaase project (2.025 Moz indicated resources
with an average grade of 1.5 g/t Au at a 0.6 g/t Au cutoff and 1.451
million ounces in an inferred category at an average grade of 1.6 g/t Au
applying a 0.6 g/t Au cut-off for a total inferred and indicated resource
of 3.476 Moz) as well as its Asumura gold project, both of which are
located in Ghana, West Africa, a highly favorable and prospective
jurisdiction. Managed by highly skilled and successful technical and
financial professionals, Keegan is well financed with no debt. Keegan is
also strongly committed to the highest standards for environmental
management, social responsibility, and health and safety for its
employees and neighboring communities. Keegan trades on the TSX and the
NYSE AMEX under the symbol KGN.

    On Behalf of the Board

    Dan McCoy, Ph.D., President & CEO

    Forward Looking and other Cautionary Information

    This release includes certain statements that may be deemed
"forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than
statements of historical facts, that address estimated resource
quantities, grades and contained metals, possible future mining,
exploration and development activities, are forward-looking statements.
Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such
forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such
statements should not be in any way construed as guarantees of future
performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from
those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements
include market prices for metals, the conclusions of detailed feasibility
and technical analyses, lower than expected grades and quantities of
resources, mining rates and recovery rates and the lack of availability
of necessary capital, which may not be available to the Company on terms
acceptable to it or at all. The Company is subject to the specific risks
inherent in the mining business as well as general economic and business
conditions. For more information on the Company, Investors should review
the Company's annual Form 20-F filing with the United States Securities
Commission and its home jurisdiction filings that are available at
www.sedar.com.

    Information Concerning Estimates of Measured, Indicated and Inferred
Resources This news release also uses the terms 'indicated resources' and
'inferred resources'. Keegan Resources Inc. advises investors that
although these terms are recognized and required by Canadian regulations
(under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral
Projects), the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission does not recognize
them. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the
mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into
reserves. In addition, 'inferred resources' have a great amount of
uncertainty as to their existence, and economic and legal feasibility. It
cannot be assumed that all or any part of an Inferred Mineral Resource
will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian rules,
estimates of Inferred Mineral Resources may not form the basis of
feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, or economic studies except for
Preliminary Assessment as defined under 43-101. Investors are cautioned
not to assume that part or all of an inferred resource exists, or is
economically or legally mineable.


 
 Neither the TSX Exchange nor any
other regulatory authority accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.

Contacts:
Keegan Resources Inc.
Investor Relations
604-683-8193 or Toll Free: 1-800-863-8655
604-683-8194 (FAX)
info@keeganresources.com
www.keeganresources.com

Copyright 2009, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

-0-
Comments (0)
This discussion is now closed. We welcome comments on our articles for a limited period after their publication.