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Jul 14, 2009
Scorpio Provides June 2009 Operations Update

Vancouver, July 14, 2009 - Scorpio Mining Corporation (TSX:SPM) is pleased to provide an operations update for June 2009 for the 100% owned Nuestra Señora mine, Sinaloa State, Mexico.

Peter J. Hawley, Chairman, CEO reports, "June 2009 was another strong month ending the second quarter of commercial production with approximately 55,000 contained ounces of pure silver produced. The company continues to be cost-efficient with Mexican cash operating costs(1) for mining, milling and administration being US$47.86 per tonne versus budgeted of US$46.51 per tonne. The increase in cost per tonne is related to one time items, which included purchase of additional balls for the mill not included in the budget, underground equipment repair, major overhaul on the cone crushing unit and extra mine night shifts in order to fill stopes with waste for the second mining lifts in various stopes. Now that these items have been addressed, the Company expects the July costs to drop below the budgeted amounts."

The Nuestra Señora operational details for the month of June are as follows:

June 2009 Concentrate Synopsis

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Concentrate Shipped
2009 June
Contained Silver Ounces
Lead Concentrate (tonnes)
214

21,838

Zinc Concentrate (tonnes)
596
2,932

Copper Concentrate (tonnes) 

156
17,971
Total
966 tonnes
 42,741 ounces

Concentrate Inventory at Month End 
2009 June
Contained  Silver Ounces
Lead Concentrate (tonnes)
143

13,954 

Zinc Concentrate (tonnes)
28
99

Copper Concentrate (tonnes) 

75
10,265
Total
246 tonnes
 24,318 ounces

Concentrate Produced during the 20 Days of June Operations
2009 June
Contained Silver Ounces
Calculated Lead Concentrate (tonnes)
368
34,800

Calculated
Zinc Concentrate (tonnes)

575
2,859

Calculated Copper Concentrate (tonnes) 

163
17,310
Total

1,106 tonnes

 54,969 ounces


Total Tonnes
Mined & Milled 

2009 June  2009 Budget
Tonnes Mined 10,722 9,720 
Tonnes Milled 14,960 12,000

Days Milling 

20 17

Average Mill Recoveries
2009 June
 2009 Budget
Silver (%)
88.1%
89.0%
Lead (%)
73.3%
80.0%

Copper (%) 

54.0%
50.0%
Zinc (%)
76.0%
79.0%


June 2009 Update
  • Underground development for the month of June stands at 168.3 metres; ore tonnage mined was 10,722 tonnes in the cut & fill stopes and ore moved to the mill was 10,415 tonnes.
  • Mexican cash operating costs(1) for mining, milling and administration for June 2009, were US$47.86 per tonne (budgeted US$46.51 per tonne).
  • Mill throughput in June reached 14,960 tonnes (budgeted 12,000 tonnes) for the 20 days of milling, or 748 tonnes per day.
  • Recoveries at the mill were 88.1% for silver (89.0% budgeted), 73.3% for lead (80.0% budgeted), 54.0% for copper (50.0% budgeted) and 76.0% for zinc (79.0% budgeted). Lower recoveries were due to the rain season beginning thus the mill fine grind had to be increased from 3/8 inch to ¾ inch to prevent clogging. The grinding has been modified with respect to grind size and recoveries have improved after modifications.
  • High-grade mine ore processed totalled 13,378 tonnes and was mixed at a 9:1 ratio with lower-grade development ore. At month end, total stockpiled ore was 42,647 tonnes including 35,714 tonnes of development ore in stockpile #1 and 6,933 tonnes of high-grade ore in stockpile #2.
  • A total of 56,969 ounces of silver were recovered for the month in addition to lead, zinc and copper credits.
  • A total of 42,741 ounces of silver were shipped / sold for the month in addition to lead, zinc, and copper credits.
  • Under the existing off-take contract in effect until October 2009, the Company shipped 156 tonnes of copper concentrates and 596 tonnes of zinc concentrates to the loading facility in Manzanillo, México. It also delivered 214 tonnes of lead concentrate to the Peñoles Smelter facility in Torreon, México under its current 2008 smelter contract, which expired June 30th, 2008. A new and more favourable off-take contract with Peñoles came into effect on July 1st, 2009.
  • The Company continues to aggressively look at near term development and or operating mining assets located in Mexico for potential acquisitions.


Further information is available on the Company's web site at: www.scorpiomining.com.

President, Mr. D. Roger Scammell, PGeo, is the Company's Qualified Person for the Nuestra Señora project and has reviewed the content of this release.

ON BEHALF OF SCORPIO MINING CORPORATION

Peter J. Hawley
Chairman & CEO

For further information contact:

Rich Kaiser, YES International: 1-800-631-8127; 001-757-306-6090 (outside North America)
Email: [email protected]

(1) Cash operating costs per tonne is a non GAAP measure. The Company believes that, in addition to cost of sales, cash operating costs per tonne is a useful and complementary benchmark for performance and is well understood and widely reported in the silver mining industry. However, cash operating costs per tonne does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by Canadian GAAP. Investors are cautioned that cash operating costs per tonne should not be construed as an alternative to cost of sales determined in accordance with Canadian GAAP as an indicator of performance. The Company's method of calculating cash costs per tonne may differ from the methods used by other entities and, accordingly, the Company's cash operating costs per tonne may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other entities. Cash operating costs per tonne is calculated as the cost of sales adjusted for change in inventories.

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to concentrate shipments, acquisition plans and Scorpio Mining Corporation's commitment to, and plans for developing the Nuestra Señora Project. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "projects", "intends", "anticipates", or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or "variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "can", "could", "would", "might", or "will" be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Scorpio Mining Corporation to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: risks related to the exploration and development and operation of the Nuestra Señora Project, risks related to international operations, the actual results of current exploration, development and operation activities, conclusions of economic evaluations, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, future prices of silver, zinc, copper, lead and gold, as well as those factors discussed in the sections relating to risk factors of our business filed in Scorpio Mining Corporation's required securities filings on SEDAR, including its Annual Information Form dated March 27, 2009. Although Scorpio Mining Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could cause results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results to be materially different from those anticipated, described, estimated, assessed or intended.

There can be no assurance that any forward-looking statements will prove accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Scorpio Mining Corporation does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that are incorporated by reference herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
 
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