Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines and WISCO Close Strategic Investment of US$240M

On July 20, 2009, Minerals Corporation Ltd. of Wuhan Iron and Steel (Group), a subsidiary of Wuhan Iron and Steel Corporation Ltd. (WISCO), announced that WISCO made the first two payment instalments for payment to Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines (CLM) of an aggregate of US$200 million. CLM also issued to WISCO 38,681,023 common shares of the company representing approximately 19.9 per cent of the issued and outstanding CLM shares post-transaction. Xiaopeng Yin, a WISCO nominee, joined the board of CLM. In addition, WISCO now holds a 25 per cent interest in a partnership established between the two firms to own and develop the Bloom Lake property. WISCO committed to purchase, at fair market value, 50 per cent of the ore produced by Bloom Lake, and has rights to purchase additional ore from Bloom Lake and a right of first offer to purchase ore produced from CLM's Lamalee and Peppler Lake properties.

The strategic investment completes funding for CLM's Bloom Lake project and is key to its transformation from being in development to a fully operational producer of iron ore.

Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP acted for CLM with a team that included John Vettese and Eva Bellissimo (securities and mining); Brian Dominique and Ann Watterworth (business); Ken Snider, Christopher Norton and Duane Milot (tax) and Gregory Hogan (securities).

McCarthy Tétrault LLP acted for WISCO with a team led by Joyce Lee and Richard Miner (China Mining group) that included Daniel Bornstein (mining); Thomas Isaac, Mira Gauvin, Cindy Vaillancourt (First Nation and environmental); Kristyn Annis, Adam Wanke, Marie-Pier Gosselin and Jennifer Chan (business).