Anooraq Acquires Commanding PGM Property Position On Northern Bushveld, South Africa.

Business Editors

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 8, 2002

Ronald W. Thiessen, President and CEO of Anooraq Resources Corporation (TSX:ARQ) (OTCBB:ARQRF) is pleased to announce that Anooraq's wholly owned subsidiary, Plateau Resources (Pty) Ltd., has entered into agreements with Rustenburg Platinum Mines Limited ("RPM"), a subsidiary of Anglo Platinum Corporation ("Anglo Platinum"), whereby Anooraq has the right to acquire up to an 80% interest in twelve new platinum group metal (PGM) properties located on the important Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex, South Africa. The potential for long life, massive tonnage, low-cost open pit mining, coupled with new infrastructure developments, has made the Northern Limb one of the most attractive targets for successful PGM exploration worldwide. Exploration activities in the region have increased dramatically over the past two years. With this obvious interest and development focus, the Northern Limb has the potential to become a world centre of PGM production.

Under the agreements with Anglo Platinum, Anooraq has acquired an initial 50% interest in PGM rights to the twelve farms and can maintain this interest by making staged exploration expenditures totalling R25 million (approximately C$3.6 million) within five years. When a mineral resource is identified, Anooraq can earn an additional 30% interest by bringing the property into commercial production. RPM will retain a 20% interest in the joint venture. The agreements also include plans to involve local communities in future development of the properties. Any participation by local and regional communities will be provided out of RPM's interest and any participation in the venture by a Black Empowerment Enterprise will be provided out of Anooraq's interest. The agreements are subject to regulatory and other approvals.

The Bushveld Complex (BC) is the world's premier location for PGM deposits, accounting for 80% of the world's known resources and 67% of the annual global production of platinum. Competition for ground in the Bushveld continues to intensify, particularly on the Northern Limb, which hosts the PGM-bearing Platreef horizon. Bushveld mines exploit three PGM environments: the higher-grade Merensky Reef mainly in the western BC, the moderate-grade UG2 horizon found throughout the BC, and a form of Merensky Reef called the Platreef on the Northern Limb. Most of the current production is derived from the Merensky and UG2 reefs, which are narrow (plus or minus 0.9 meters), moderately dipping, tabular deposits mined by underground methods. The Platreef is considerably thicker than the PGM-bearing horizons on the other limbs of the Bushveld, and is amenable to low-cost, large-scale surface mining methods that are especially attractive to the world's most senior mining companies.

The Platreef horizon hosts world-class PGM deposits. On farms adjoining Anooraq's Platreef properties, Anglo Platinum's subsidiary Potgietersrust Platinums ("PPRust") mines PGM and base metals at the large open pit Sandsloot operation. According to the 2000 Annual Report, the PPRust property hosts eight deposits, containing about 68 million ounces of PGM plus gold, in about 500 million tonnes of mineral reserves and resources. The 12,000 tonne per day Sandsloot mine produced 411,000 refined ounces of platinum, palladium and rhodium in 2000, along with substantial by-product gold, nickel and copper.

The new acquisitions effectively double Anooraq's PGM rights on the Platreef to 19 farms, covering some 37,000 hectares.

The Company now controls property along 45 kilometers of this highly prospective horizon. The new farms are in two main groups - the first group is north of and contiguous with the Company's existing properties. The second group is located at the southern end of the Platreef, in a new area of interest known as Grass Valley. A map showing all of Anooraq's Platreef properties is posted on the Company's website at www.hdgold.com.

Anglo Platinum is carrying out substantial capital projects in the region, in preparation to meet its stated objectives of reaching 3.5 million ounces of PGM production from the Bushveld by 2006. Included in these plans is the construction of an entirely new smelting complex at Polokwane, formerly Pietersburg, about 20 kilometers from the majority of Anooraq's mineral holdings. As part of the agreements, Anooraq and RPM have established an option to enter into an arm's length concentrate purchase and sale agreement.

In addition to the properties and agreements above, Anooraq is involved in other activities to explore and make new discoveries on the Northern Limb. In October 2001, African Minerals Ltd., a private affiliate of Robert Friedland's Ivanhoe Capital Corporation, acquired the right to earn a 50% joint venture interest and operate exploration programs on one of Anooraq's mineral holdings - the 2,900-hectare Rietfontein farm. Rietfontein is located adjacent to and southeast of Anglo's PPRust property and to the east of African Minerals' Turfspruit farm. The common boundary of Turfspruit and Rietfontein straddles the Platreef. South African government geology maps indicate that the Platreef horizon on Turfspruit has been faulted, shifting it east onto the Rietfontein farm, in the area immediately to the south of where African Minerals is currently drilling with five rigs to within about five meters of the property boundary. This obvious target awaits drilling while African Minerals completes initial testing of a 1.5 kilometer long PGM soil anomaly located at the northern end of Rietfontein. African Minerals has reported anomalous platinum-palladium-rhodium-gold values greater than 100 ppb (3PGMplusAu) were intersected over lengths varying from 3 meters to up to 117 meters in the first 3 holes drilled. For example, hole RF-1 intersected 182 ppb (3PGMplusAu) from 87 m to 204 m (117 meters). PGM mineralization is dispersed throughout each hole in several rock units and is associated with up to 1-2% sulphides. Anomalous nickel and copper values occur with the anomalous PGM values.

Anooraq has completed a 35-hole drill program on its ground immediately to the north of the PPRust property; all but one of these holes, drilled over a 4.5 kilometer length of the Platreef, intersected significant platinum-palladium-rhodium-gold and associated copper-nickel mineralization. Three mineralized zones with good grade and continuity were outlined over a total thickness of 35 meters. The largest of these has been traced for over 2,000 meters, is up to 250 meters wide, and 10-20 meters thick. Thick PGMplusAu intercepts were encountered at the limits of the drilling, indicating excellent potential to the north and down dip to the west. These intercepts include 46 meters grading 1.60 g/t or 6 meters grading 4.61 g/t; 35 meters grading 2.16 g/t or 5.5 meters grading 5.62 g/t; 48 meters grading 1.61 g/t; 21 meters grading 2.53 g/t or 5.0 meters grading 4.26 g/t; 45 meters grading 1.79 g/t and 22 meters grading 2.00 g/t.

As Anooraq continues to closely follow drilling on the Rietfontein farm, it is also making plans to advance its corporate development opportunities. Technical staff is conducting an extensive review of Anooraq's commanding PGM holdings to prioritize targets for drilling in the near term.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ronald W. Thiessen, President & CEO 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 future production, reserve potential, exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not 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, exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, Investors should review the Company's annual Form 20-F filing with the United States Securities and its home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained in this news release.