Fortuna Provides Drilling Update

La Plata is just one of numerous high grade "traditional" veinswhich comprise the extensive silver-lead-zinc and gold mineralizedsystem at the Company's 100% owned Caylloma Silver Mine. The vein islocated only 0.5 km south of the larger polymetallic Animas vein andwithin 1.5 km of the processing plant.

Reserves on La Plata and Cymoide (a parallel splay of La Plata)currently stand at 52,987 tonnes of 437 gpt Ag and 2.33 gpt Au, withadditional Inferred Resources of 40,243 tonnes @ 709 gpt Ag and 2.99gpt Au (See Technical Report filed by the Company on SEDAR June 24,2005).

The Company is working to reopen the mine in 2006 and ongoingunderground and surface drilling is designed to help upgrade existingresources, determine optimum production rates, and find newmineralization. A total of 6 holes have been drilled on La Plata andresults received to date are tabulated below.

Table of Initial Results

True width is approximately 86% of interval.

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DDH From To Interval m Ag gpt Au gpt
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LPL-7M-12 713.60 14.95 1.35 1387 16.5
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LPL-8M-129 40.40 41.75 1.35 214 4.7
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LPL-8M-130 7.33 7.50 0.17 1012 26.8
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LPL-8M-130 20.75 21.55 0.80 120 0.47
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LPL-8M-131 17.65 17.98 0.33 449 0.84
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LPL-8M-132 Results Pending
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LPL-8M-133 Results Pending
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Drill hole LPL-8M-129 intersected the La Plata vein 50 metersbelow Level 7, the lowest level of underground workings on the vein.Hole LPL-7M-127 intersected a previously unrecognized splay of thevein on Level 7. Mineralization encountered in both drill holes isoutside the bounds of existing resources and reserves, anddemonstrates that there is good potential to find additionalmineralization with ongoing drilling.

Mr. Jorge Ganoza Durant, Vice President of Business Development,commented that "La Plata is only one of several veins that willprovide high grade silver and gold values to the processing plant,while the polymetallic Animas vein will provide the bulk of productiontonnage."

All Fortuna samples are crushed, pulverized and analyzed at CIMMAnalytical Labs preparation facility in Lima, Peru. Fortuna has aquality control and quality assurance procedure in place whichincludes the insertion of blanks, duplicates and standards on aregular basis.

San Jose Silver-Gold Project, Mexico

Fortuna is also pleased to announce that a core drilling rig hasbeen mobilized to the San Jose project in Oaxaca. The Company isworking to earn a 70% interest in the high grade silver-gold projectfrom Continuum Resources Ltd. and is obligated to spend at least $1million on drilling by August 2006.

The San Jose vein has returned very encouraging results frominitial sampling, with underground channel sample values up to 10 g/tgold and 1,100 g/t silver over 2.3m average widths, from existingworkings on the Trinidad zone (see Fortuna press release of November16, 2005 and Continuum Resources Ltd. press release of May 10, 2005).

Fortuna has budgeted for a 10,000m drill program which willinvolve infill drilling on the Trinidad zone to allow preparation of aresource estimate, as well as wider spaced step outs along the 3kmlong vein system to identify additional mineralization.

Qualified Person: Mr. Peter Thiersch, M.Sc., P.Geo., President ofFortuna, is the Qualified Person for the Company, as defined byNational Instrument 43-101, and is responsible for the accuracy ofthis press release.

For more information, please visit our website atwww.fortunasilver.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Peter Thiersch, President

Fortuna Silver Mines Inc.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not takeresponsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. (TSX VENTURE:FVI)