Stornoway Diamond Corporation (SWY:TSX), Shear Minerals Ltd. (SRM:TSXV), and BHP Billiton Diamonds Inc. (BHP Billiton) today announced that four diamonds larger than 500 microns in one dimension have been recovered from a 76.45 kg kimberlite sample from the Churchill Diamond Project. In addition, recent prospecting has discovered a new kimberlite outcrop and six kimberlite float occurrences on the property.

Diamond Update

Nine diamonds including four larger than 500 microns in one dimension have been recovered from kimberlite KD209 which is situated 5 km north of the Josephine River Corridor. Both the Josephine and Sedna Corridors are the focus of this year's drilling campaign at Churchill and show favourable G10 mineral chemistry. KD209 is 14 km from tidewater and under 10m to 15m of overburden. A -60 degree-drill hole tested a 125m x 100m magnetic low anomaly and 34.2m of hypabyssal kimberlite was intersected characterized by ilmenite and olivine macrocrysts up to 2cm in size and possible eclogitic garnets and xenoliths. 

Samples were submitted for micro diamond analysis using caustic fusion to the ISO/IEC 17025 accredited Saskatchewan Research Council Geoanalytical Laboratories ("SRC"). Diamonds were recovered as follows: 

¹ The four largest diamonds measured 0.9x0.88x0.64mm (clear); 0.8x0.58x0.46mm (clear amber); 0.74x0.24x0.08mm (colorless fragment) and 0.54x0.26x0.22mm (colorless broken octahedron)

Also, the remaining 118.3kg of drill core from KD900, where the first macro diamond from the Churchill property was recovered (as reported in a press release dated August 29, 2005), was sampled and submitted to the SRC for additional micro diamond analysis. One colourless, clear octahedron diamond was recovered measuring 0.22x0.16x0.12mm.

No micro diamonds were recovered from kimberlite, KD5774, referred to in the same press release. Drilling of at least 15 more targets is underway with this year's exploration program planned to continue to the end of September, or until weather halts work. Additional results will be reported as they become available.

Churchill Prospecting Discoveries

Ground prospecting has resulted in the discovery of a second new kimberlite exposure plus kimberlite boulders at six new locations. Four of the locations are closely associated with geophysical anomalies. Three of the locations are located within the Josephine River G10 corridor. One of the float locations is of particular interest (05FWR006) due to its composition of more than 50% olivine macrocrysts with abundant purple garnets exhibiting kelyphytic rims, possible chromite and abundant phlogopite. . None of the kimberlites drilled to date have displayed textures as is seen in this small piece of relatively non-magnetic float (05FWR006) suggesting that this may represent a high interest kimberlitic source. Samples have been taken from all locales for mineral chemistry and where possible for microdiamond analysis.

The new kimberlite exposure (05FWR004), is associated with geophysical anomaly FF119, a 50m by 150m magnetic high trending 030 degrees within the North Corridor, approximately 15km northeast of the main Josephine River Corridor. 100kg of this kimberlite will be processed for microdiamonds, indicator minerals and petrography. 

The Churchill Diamond Project is comprised of mineral rights to more than 9 million acres located near the community of Rankin Inlet and Chesterfield Inlet in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut. The project is owned by joint venture partners Shear, which has a 51% interest and is the operator, Stornoway (35%) and BHP Billiton (14%). In 2003 and 2004, Shear and its partners discovered 34 kimberlites over a wide area on the Churchill and Churchill West projects. The 2005 field program is under the supervision of Jennifer Burgess, P. Geol., a Qualified Person under NI 43-101.

On behalf of the Board
STORNOWAY DIAMOND CORPORATION
/s/ "Eira Thomas"
Eira Thomas
President