Shares of NovaCopper Commenced Trading in the US and Canada; The 2012 Exploration Season is Officially Launched
Posted by: Alison Northey on 5/2/2012 9:43:32 AM

May 2, 2012 - Vancouver, British Columbia - NovaCopper Inc. (TSX, NYSE-AMEX: NCQ) ("NovaCopper” or "the Company”) is pleased to announce that its common shares have commenced trading on the TSX and NYSE-AMEX Exchanges following the completion of the spinout from NovaGold Resources Inc. (TSX, NYSE-AMEX: NG) ("NovaGold”). NovaCopper's principal asset is located in Alaska's highly prospective Ambler mining district in Northwestern Alaska. NovaCopper and NANA Regional Corporation Inc., an Alaskan Native Corporation, entered into a progressive agreement in October 2011 founded on the cooperative development of the Ambler mining district.

The Ambler district is one of the richest and most-prospective copper districts located in one of the safest geopolitical jurisdictions in the world. It hosts world-class volcanogenic massive sulfide ("VMS”) deposits that contain copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver, and carbonate replacement deposits rich in copper, but also containing significant amounts of cobalt and silver. In 2011, exploration efforts were focused on two deposits in the Ambler district – the Arctic VMS deposit with ~7% copper-equivalent grades[1] and the Bornite carbonate replacement deposit. The Arctic deposit had a post-tax net present value of between approximately $500 million and $1.0 billion, depending on metal price assumptions in the Preliminary Economic Assessment filed April 24, 2012[2]. At the Bornite deposit, initial drill results included 178 meters of 4% copper, including nearly 35 meters of 12% copper and further demonstrated the exceptionally high-grade nature of this important and evolving mineral district (see NovaGold's press release dated December 14, 2011).

"I am very pleased to be leading NovaCopper as we enter the next phase of the company's development,” said Mr. Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, the President and Chief Executive Officer. "Now that we are a public company independent of NovaGold, we are looking forward to unlocking great value from the exceptional assets we have in the Ambler mining district. Our experienced team is enthusiastic and focused on continuing to identify high-grade mineralization through an aggressive exploration program completing 15,000 meters to 20,000 meters of drilling. The exploration team is on site preparing the camp for this year's program which will run from May to October 2012. I'm confident that this year's exploration efforts will further expand resources, make new discoveries, and advance this world class mining district towards a development decision, thereby creating tremendous value for our shareholders. We look forward to working with NANA and the local communities to develop the Ambler mining district into a premier North American copper producer.”

NovaCopper is also pleased to announce the launch of its new website. To access the latest updated Company information, please visit http://www.novacopper.com/.

About NovaCopper

NovaCopper is a base metals exploration company focused on exploring and developing the Ambler mining district, which hosts world-class VMS deposits containing copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver and carbonate replacement deposits containing copper, cobalt and silver. It is one of the richest and most-prospective known copper districts located in one of the safest geopolitical jurisdictions in the world. The Company is focused on continuing to identify high-grade mineralization with additional exploration planned in 2012. Using four drill rigs the Company expects to complete between 15,000 meters to 20,000 meters of drilling. NovaCopper has formed an alliance with NANA, an Alaskan Native Corporation and both companies are committed to developing the Ambler mining district in cooperation with the local communities. Our vision is to develop the Ambler mining district into a premier North American copper producer.

NovaCopper Contact:

Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse
President & Chief Executive Officer

Elaine Sanders
Chief Financial Officer & Corporate Secretary

604-638-8088 or 1-855-638-8088