Colony Pacific Explorations Ltd. Exploration Update.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 17, 1997-- Colony Pacific Explo (TSE:CYX.) Colony Pacific Explorations Ltd. (CYX-T) is pleased to report on exploration activities at its four Sumatra properties, Karang, Gedang, Ranau and Aceh, held under a Joint Venture Strategic Alliance with Ingold Holdings Indonesia Inc. (Ingold), a subsidiary of Inco Limited.

KARANG PROPERTY

Forty-nine exploration targets, comprised of stream sediment geochemical, airborne magnetic, and airborne radiometric potassium anomalies, have been identified on the property. Evaluation of these targets has been carried out by stream sediment sampling, prospecting, and mapping. Over 3,500 rock and stream sediment samples have been collected and analyzed. This work has resulted in the discovery of four mineral prospects in the western portion of the property: Mudik, Putih, Ular and Terang. The majority of the targets in the eastern portion of the property have yet to be evaluated.

Mudik Prospect

Mudik, the most advanced prospect on the Karang Property, consists of numerous, hydrothermally altered, brecciated, pyritic boulders up to 20 m in diameter which contain up to 7.5 g/t gold. They occur over a 2 km2 area within an oval-shaped, clay altered, locally pyritic granodiorite pluton, about 2.5 km in length, surrounded by clay to sericite altered felsic crystal tuffs to the north and andesite to the south. The intrusion is coincident with an airborne potassium anomaly. The area is located immediately west of a principal strand of the Sumatra Fault System, a major locus for mineralization in Sumatra. South of the boulder field there is a cluster of strong copper stream sediment geochemical anomalies, with values up to 357 ppm Cu. This suggests that the epithermal Mudik gold mineralization may be related to a nearby copper-gold porphyry system.

In order to further define the Mudik prospect prior to trenching and drilling, a 58 line kilometre grid has been cut, oriented along an east-west, 2.9 km long baseline with north-south crosslines every 100 metres. Approximately 1,600 soil samples have been collected at 25 metre intervals. Mapping has begun along the grid lines. This will be followed by trenching in the vicinity of the large pyritic boulders believed to be close to their original locations.

Putih Prospect

Detailed work including geological mapping, stream sediment and rock sampling has been completed at Putih, a polymetallic prospect located within a northwest-southeast trending fault splaying off the Great Sumatra Fault. Galena, sphalerite and chalcopyrite have been observed as fracture filling material in a clay-altered felsic tuff. As part of the original reconnaissance exploration program, a grab sample of sericite rich mineralized felsic tuff returned values of 3.83 percent Cu, 10.48 percent Pb, 10.27 percent Zn, 209 g/t Ag and 0.87 g/t Au. -0-

Four follow up grab samples collected from this showing yield
results of:

Au (g/t)     Cu (percent)     Pb (percent)  Zn (percent)
5.49         2.26             5.90          3.40
3.78         0.37             1.84          3.70
0.48         2.16             7.93          2.03
0.18         3.21             7.75          2.74

Ular Prospect

The Ular Prospect was discovered during follow up prospecting activity carried out in the Putih area. Two brecciated quartz float samples returned respectively 3.63 g/t Au and 4.96 g/t Au. In the vicinity of the float samples, the drainage is underlain by intermediate tuffs and breccias. Additional float samples in the same drainage contain copper and gold mineralization up to 3 percent Cu and 1 g/t Au.

Terang Prospect

Follow up work at the Terang Prospect has identified several new exposures including an 8 metre wide zone of silicified and quartz veined granodiorite. Other Prospects

Limited follow up reconnaissance was done south of the Mudik Prospect at Simpangtutup where float boulders similar in appearance to the Mudik mineralized boulders were identified in July. Follow up reconnaissance was also done at Sungai Gelampe, Sokopangkat and several drainages near Airterjun.

GEDANG AND RANAU PROPERTIES

At Gedang, fifteen exploration targets have been identified based on regional stream sediment data from the British Geological Survey and the airborne geophysical survey undertaken this year. A sampling program was initiated on eight of the target areas. Float samples in one area, the Lemau drainage contain up to 4.13 g/t Au in quartz vein float. Float samples in the Susup drainage contain up to 3.82 percent Cu. The western margin of a 2.5 kilometre by 1.5 kilometre horseshoe shaped magnetic anomaly coincident with a strong radiometric potassium anomaly and significant copper values in stream sediments was tested by mapping and prospecting.

At Ranau, nine exploration targets have been identified. The most important of these is an elongated magnetic anomaly 1.5 kilometres in length by 500 metres in width.

7th Generation Contracts of Work

The Karang, Gedang and Ranau properties are covered by 7th Generation Contract of Work applications which have now been approved by Indonesian parliament and are expected to be signed into law by President Suharto prior to year end.

ACEH PROPERTY

Woyla - Fifth Generation Contract of Work Miwah Prospect

Recent metallurgical testwork commissioned by Colony indicates that good recoveries of gold can be achieved from Miwah ore using cyanide leach. This finding significantly enhances the economic potential of this project. Limited drilling at Miwah suggests a potential target of 100 million tonnes grading between 0.75 and 1.25 g/t Au. Thirteen drill holes have been completed. Intercepts include 1.42 g/t Au over 71 metres and 1.0 g/t Au over 58 metres.

Beutong Prospect

The drilling program completed at the Beutong prospect demonstrated that copper porphyry mineralization had been effected by later intrusives which have limited the available tonnage. It is estimated that an identified mineral resource in the inferred category of 40 million tonnes at 0.85 percent copper has been delineated. This resource was estimated by compositing assays of greater than 0.7 percent Cu over the drill hole and using this as an average for geologically defined blocks. A larger lower grade envelope surrounds the estimated resource.

Despite favourable logistics, Beutong is not considered to be economic as a stand alone resource. However, exploration is continuing on other target areas and this resource could be important in any subsequent development.

Gunung Pucuk (GP) Prospect

Alteration typically associated with the margins of porphyry copper systems has been discovered on the GP Prospect. Two holes have been drilled 320 metres apart. Both were weakly mineralized but neither is believed to be an exhaustive test of the porphyry copper potential of the area.

Geudob Prospect

Two holes were completed at Geudob, which intersected alteration typical of porphyry copper systems. The first hole tested a diorite porphyry which exhibits phyllic and propylitic alteration and mineralization on surface. The second hole intersected a breccia showing of moderate to strong propylitic alteration. Both holes were weakly mineralized.

Tiger Ridge Prospect

A hole drilled at Tiger Ridge intersected granodiorite with a weakly mineralized intercept of breccia toward the bottom of the hole.

Tripa - Sixth Generation Contract of Work

Reconnaissance work has commenced on the Tripa signed 6th Generation Contract of Work. A drainage orientation survey was completed and a total of 458 samples collected from four main systems to establish the most appropriate sampling methodology for the area. Geological traverses were undertaken along streams being sampled and along logging roads. Predominant rock types observed were flat lying metasediments with alteration and quartz - pyrite veining restricted to major fault zones. At several localities however completely altered porphyritic intrusives were observed as float and in two localities in the northwestern corner of the property, several large boulders of silica - pyrite cap rock were noted. Preliminary geological mapping and prospecting is ongoing.

FINANCIAL POSITION - EXPLORATION

Colony has spent a total of US$5.4 million on its Sumatra properties to date. Of this amount, US$3.3 million has been spent on the Aceh Property and US$2.1 million has been spent on the Karang, Gedang and Ranau properties.

Colony is required to fund the first US$6 million in exploration on the Aceh Property in order to vest and be carried for the next US$22.3 million in project expenditures. Assuming that these "carried" expenditures are made, the interests of the parties in the Aceh project will be: Colony 24 percent; Ingold 36 percent; Highlands Pacific 30 percent; and an Indonesian Partner 10 percent.

Colony has a right to earn a 100 percent interest in the Karang, Gedang and Ranau properties by spending US$12 million at the rate of US$3 million per year. Upon completion of these expenditures, Inco (Ingold) has the right to buy back a 60 percent interest by carrying Colony for the next US$30 million of expenditures at the rate of US$3 million per year.

Colony's working capital position presently stands at approximately US$1.2 million, sufficient to complete drill target definition and carry out preliminary drilling at Mudik, which will commence soon after the 7th Generation Contract of Work on Karang has been made effective under Indonesian law.

Pierre Lebel President

CONTACT: Colony Pacific Explorations Ltd.

Pierre Lebel, 604/689-5797

604/687-4030 (FAX)

or

Colony Pacific Explorations Ltd.

Maryse Belanger, 604/689-5797

604/687-4030 (FAX)