NEWS RELEASE

INTERNATIONAL MINERALS CORPORATION

September 3, 2002

Trading: TSX & SWX: IMZ

DRILLING CONTINUES AT INTERNATIONAL MINERALS’
RIO BLANCO GOLD-SILVER PROPERTY, ECUADOR
High-Grade Assay Results in Initial Drill Holes

International (formerly Ecuadorian) Minerals Corporation (“IMC”) to date has completed 20 drill holes for a total of 4,000m of a planned approximately 5,000m Phase 3 core drilling program that commenced at the end of May at the 100%-held Rio Blanco (formerly known as “Beroen”) epithermal gold-silver property in Ecuador. The majority of the drilling so far (14 drill holes totaling 3,510m) has tested the depth potential of the eastern part of the high grade Alejandra Zone (see attached map), which is the highest-grade target on the property at the present time. This Phase 3 program is expected to be completed in October and a new resource calculation is scheduled to follow in November.

A limited amount of shallow drilling (six drill holes totaling 490m) has also tested a new mineralized area, the Orquidea Zone (see map), located about 500m south of the Alejandra Zone in an area with narrow quartz veins, breccias and stockworking with visible electrum (native gold/silver) and pyrargyrite (silver/antimony sulfide). Results from surface rock panel samples taken by IMC at Orquidea ranged from <0.1 g/t to 380.3 g/t gold and <1 to 4,687 g/t silver.

Alejandra Zone

Assay results have been received for the first four drill holes. These initial drill holes are part of a series of holes that were focused on testing the depth extension of the eastern portion of the Alejandra zone in order to better define the continuity, structural orientation and the contained mineralization prior to stepping out beyond the eastern extension of the last phase of drilling, which is delineated by drill hole BC-48 (see map).

The initial drill results to date indicate that the mineralization extends to at least 300m below surface and remains open at depth. This vertical extent of mineralization is more than double the depth that was indicated by the previous phases of drilling in the Alejandra Zone.

New drill hole BC-50 recorded the single best drill hole intercept on the property to date with 8.6m at 29.3 g/t gold and 321 g/t silver, including 5.3m at 43.9 g/t gold and 508 g/t silver. This high-grade intercept is also important in that it contains a new type of non-brecciated vein (with distinctive epithermal textures and a red pyrargyrite) that has so far only been observed in the high-grade breccia fragments in the Alejandra tunnel/adit. The presence of this new type of vein (designated “Bonanza Vein” by IMC), approximately 150m below and 350m to the east of the adit level, supports the possibility that drill hole BC-50, may be tapping into the source of the high grade breccia fragments that are observed at a much higher level in the adit. Management considers this fact, together with the extended depth of mineralization intercepted to date, to be positive for the ultimate potential of the gold-silver mineralized system on the Rio Blanco property.

Complete results received to date are provided below with drill hole locations shown on the attached map. Note that all gold and silver assays are uncut:

In November 2000, based on the results of the previous drill programs, IMC completed an in-house, inferred resource estimate (carried out by Dr. Barry Rayment, IMC’s qualified person, who is a consultant to and a director of IMC) for the Alejandra and Dorada Zones using a 1 g/t gold cut-off grade which outlined 1.07 million ounces gold and 7.6 million ounces silver contained within 7.0 million tonnes of material at a grade of 4.8 g/t gold and 34 g/t silver (gold and silver grades are uncut). Within this overall resource is a body of high-grade mineralization within the Alejandra Zone with approximately 578,000 ounces gold and 4.3 million ounces silver contained within 1.7 million tonnes of material grading 10.9 g/t gold and 81 g/t silver. The expansion of the size and extent of the Alejandra Zone, especially this high-grade zone, is the focus of the initial portion of the Phase 3 drill program as discussed above.

Orquidea

Assay results have been received for the first two of six reconnaissance or scout drill holes (totaling 490m and ranging from 26m to 133m in depth) in this newly discovered area. These drill holes were focused on establishing continuity at depth of the erratic, high grade surface gold-silver mineralization that was found in veins and mineralized wallrocks by the initial surface rock panel sampling by IMC in May this year. Overall, these results provide sufficient encouragement to warrant additional work at a later stage in the program.

The best intercepts to date (from the two holes with completed assay results) were reported in drill hole BC-53, with two separate intercepts of 1.0 m at 20.6 g/t gold with 39 g/t silver and 1.2m at 10.9 g/t gold with 36 g/t silver.

Complete results for the two drill holes received to date are shown below. Note that all gold and silver assays are uncut:

The Phase 3 drilling program is being carried out by Paragon Drilling Ecuador, S.A under a Canadian drilling supervisor. Sample preparation of drill hole and surface rock samples is undertaken by ALS Chemex, Quito, Ecuador using standard industry practices. The primary laboratory for analytical work is ALS Chemex, Vancouver, Canada using conventional fire-assay methods for gold and silver. Duplicate assays for selected samples are carried out by Acme Geochemical Inc., also in Vancouver and show good reproducibility, particularly for high-grade samples (greater than 5g/t gold and 15g/t silver). In addition, analytical standards (with known gold values) and blanks (with zero gold/silver values) were included for quality control purposes.

Future Work Program

The remaining drill holes (approximately 5-7 holes totaling 1,000-1,300m) of the Phase 3 drill program are scheduled to be completed in October and will test the western part of the Alejandra and Alejandra North Zones (including further drilling of some of the high grade veins, specifically the Elizabeth and Minerva veins) and, pending drill results of completed drill holes, additional drilling to further test the eastern extension of the high grade Alejandra Zone both along strike and at depth. Additional assay results from the remaining drill holes will be released as they become available. A new resource calculation is expected to be completed by November.

Amendment to Property Agreement

The Company has reached agreement with Rio Tinto Mining and Exploration Limited (“Rio Tinto”), the property vendor, whereby a US$200,000 cash payment scheduled to be paid to Rio Tinto on October 8, 2002 will be satisfied as to US$100,000 in cash and US$100,000 in shares of the Company, subject to regulatory approval. This share issuance will preserve the Company’s working capital for further exploration and development of the Rio Blanco project.

Stephen J. Kay, President and CEO

The Toronto and Swiss Stock Exchanges neither approve nor disapprove the information contained in this News Release.

For additional information, contact Investor Relations at Tel: (480) 483-9932 or Fax: (480) 483-9926.

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