Toronto, Ontario - Kinross Gold Corporation (TSE - K, NYSE - KGC) is pleased to report on the status of the Goldbanks Project. During the last seven months, Kinross Goldbanks Mining Company and Restoration Minerals Company have completed an additional 115,000 feet of core and reverse circulation drilling on the 27,800 acre Goldbanks Joint Venture property located about 35 miles south of
Winnemucca, Nevada. To date, 903 drill holes have been completed which total more than 567,000 feet within the project area. Recent drilling results, coupled with extensive laboratory test work on numerous drill holes, have significantly increased resource estimates for the Main Zone and KW gold deposits. In addition, two exciting new areas of extensive gold mineralization have been discovered by
widely-spaced exploration drill holes on 300 to 1,000 foot spaced drilling patterns.

As at December 9, 1996, the mineral resource estimates calculated by the Company for all the Joint Venture area total 145,230,000 tons with an average gold grade of 0.029 ounces per ton ("opt") containing about 4.2 million ounces of gold. The mineral resource estimates are based on conventional polygonal methods using a gold cut-off grade of 0.011 opt. There is also an additional associated tonnage of a lower grade mineral resource in the same area, contained within a grade range of 0.005 to 0.011 opt totaling 287,150,000 tons with an average gold grade of 0.007 opt containing about 2.0 million ounces of gold.

In the Main Zone, closely-spaced core and reverse circulation drilling on 50 to 75 foot centers, and the use of cyanide soluble assays of large samples have increased the estimated contained ounces of gold for a portion of the mineable orebody drilled to a closer spacing. The increase occurs because the greater sample density encountered groupings of much higher grade material that were missed by the 150 foot drill hole spacing, and the larger samples more accurately deal with gold particle size and particle clustering in the diatreme breccia host rocks. In over 50 percent of the closely-spaced holes, intersections of 10 to 40 feet of gold grades ranging from 0.150 to 3.70 opt were reported and triple checked for confirmation of the assay results. Additional in-fill core drilling throughout the 5,500 foot long by 1,000 foot wide Main Zone is also confirming the increase of gold grade for the entire deposit. Updated reserve and resource estimates should be available by early 1997.

In the KW area located about two miles northwest of the Main Zone, additional step out drilling and laboratory analysis of large samples have produced similar results. Additional reverse circulation drilling is currently underway on the open southern and western margins of the deposit to determine the ultimate shape, tonnage, and grade of the KW deposit.

The first of the previously mentioned new discoveries has been named the BEX area and is located west of the Main Zone. The BEX area contains extensive gold and silver mineralization throughout an area approximately 3,000 feet wide by 5,000 feet long, and the mineralization varies from 100 to over 800 feet in thickness. The top of the mineralization is encountered from 400 to 750 feet below the surface. Gold values range from 0.005 to over 0.500 opt and silver values range from 0.20 to 20.00 opt. In-fill drilling between the 1,000 foot BEX drill hole grid and deepening of BEX holes that bottomed in ore grade mineralization is now in progress. Core drilling will also be commenced after results of initial reverse circulation drilling have been analyzed. This drilling program in the BEX area will attempt to confirm the continuity, grade and extent of this mineralization to depths of 1,500 feet below the surface. Although the BEX area has significant potential to add to Goldbanks' resources, it currently represents about 6% of the 6.2 million ounces of gold in the mineral resources estimate.

The second discovery known as the PC area is located approximately 2.3 miles north of the Main Zone and 0.3 miles northeast of KW deposit. Continuing drilling on a 300 foot pattern has outlined an area of extensive contiguous gold, silver, and copper mineralization that is now defined as being approximately 1,000 feet long, 400 to 1,000 feet wide and ranges from 40 to nominally 150 feet thick with gold grades in the drill holes ranging from 0.005 to 0.147 opt, silver grades of 0.10 to 2.90 opt, and 0.10 percent to 2.0 percent copper. The mineralization occurs from 100 to 200 feet below the surface and is not amenable to cyanide leaching, however, preliminary flotation test work indicates good metal recovery is possible by this metallurgical method.

Unlike the previously described BEX, Main Zone, and KW areas where the mineralization occurs in diatreme breccia and adjacent wall rocks, portions of the PC area mineralization occur in quartz porphyry intrusive rocks. Therefore, it is possible that the gold copper mineralization contained in these intrusive rocks may be high-level appendages of a deeper seated porphyry copper deposit. In-fill drilling is in progress to determine the grade and extent of this area.

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information