Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. February 5th, 2009. Columbus Gold Corporation (CGT: TSXV) ("Columbus Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of drilling at the Company's Summit Project where joint venture partner Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited (AEM: TSE & NYSE) ("Agnico-Eagle") can earn an initial 51% interest by undertaking staged annual exploration expenditures over a five year period. The Company is also pleased to provide an update on its Chert Cliff and Scraper gold projects.

The Summit Project is located along the northeastern flank of the Pequop Range, approximately 14 miles (22 km) east of Wells, Nevada and strategically positioned along strike and approximately 4,000 feet (1.2 km) from the northern end of the Long Canyon gold deposit of AuEx Ventures, Inc. and Fronteer Development Group Inc. where ongoing drilling continues to confirm the presence of highgrade oxide gold mineralization. The Summit Project is also in close proximity to AuEx's and Agnico-Eagle's West Pequop gold project. A map of the Summit Project area may be viewed here:

www.columbusgoldcorp.com/i/pdf/maps/summit_location.pdf

Agnico-Eagle completed seven rotary holes totaling 6,040 feet (1,830 meters) in their initial drilling program at Summit.

One hole tested the Upper Paleozoic section-equivalent to the Pilot and Joana Formations, known to be favorable for Carlin-style gold deposits regionally. These favorable rocks are extensive, but almost everywhere covered by alluvium. The drill hole encountered multiple, thick sections (up to 100 ft (30 m)) of anomalous gold and arsenic both in the Upper Paleozoic section and in the underlying Guilmette Formation carbonate rocks, with a high assay of 203 ppb over five feet (1.5 m). This was the only drill hole to test this stratigraphic horizon in the Northern Pequop Range, which deserves considerable attention for further work.

Three holes tested geochemical anomalies near a thrust fault juxtaposing Devonian Guilmette Formation and Permian sedimentary rocks. Two of these holes encountered anomalous gold and lead in multiple zones over thicknesses of 75-100 ft (23-30 m). The gold values ranged from 10-122 ppb.

The other three holes were located near the eastern range front, north of the Long Canyon discovery. These holes cut Lower Paleozoic formations and intersected scattered weakly anomalous gold over narrow intervals.

Agnico-Eagle has advised the Company that it intends to continue with its option to earn an interest in the Summit Project and with plans to carry-out additional exploration expenditures during the 2009 field season.

CHERT CLIFF GOLD PROJECT

Columbus Gold is also pleased to announce that Platte River Gold Inc., has completed drilling on the Company's Chert Cliff Property, located in the Gold Bar District along the prolific Battle Mountain Gold Trend about 40 miles (65 km) northwest of Eureka, Nevada. The Chert Cliff Property has been leased to privately held Platte River Gold and forms part of their Gable Property. Various Chert Cliff Project maps may be viewed here:

http://www.columbusgoldcorp.com/s/Maps.asp?Reportid=124369

Platte River drilled seven reverse circulation holes totaling 5,140 feet (1,567 meters) at Chert Cliff. The holes ranged from 300 ft to 1,420 ft (91 m to 433 m) in dept. All of the holes were drilled outside of the Chert Cliff resource defined by Asarco in the 1980's. Asarco succeeded in outlining the Chert Cliff gold deposit containing a historic resource of approximately 1.4 million tons grading 0.04 opt
gold (56,000 ounces) entirely hosted in the Webb Formation.

Drilling by Platte River encountered additional mineralization in the Webb Formation and also lowgrade but significant mineralization in the Lower Plate Denay Formation which is a host of mineralization at the nearby, multi-million ounce Cortez Hill's gold deposit being developed by Barrick Gold.

The gold mineralization encountered in holes C-4, C-7, and C-8 in the Denay Formation occurs in carbonaceous limestone stratigraphically lower and about 600 ft (183 m) north of the resource delineated by Asarco. The best holes drilled were C-4, which encountered 180 ft (55 m) [from 170 ft to 350 ft (52 m to 107 m] of 0.013 opt gold, including 40 ft (12 m) of 0.025 opt gold, in the Denay Formation, and C-1, with 0-190 ft (0-58 m) of 0.020 opt gold in the Webb Formation.

The confirmation of mineralization in the Denay Formation opens up many additional targets for future drilling.

SCRAPER GOLD PROJECT

The Company also announces that Newmont has terminated its option to earn into Columbus Gold's Scraper gold project located approximately 45 miles (72 km) north of Battle Mountain, Nevada, and situated directly on the northern extension of the prolific Carlin Trend of gold deposits. Various Scraper Project maps may be viewed here:

http://www.columbusgoldcorp.com/s/Maps.asp?Reportid=166727

Newmont's exploration activity at Scraper was carried out in late 2007 and 2008 and included a soil geochemical survey consisting of 797 samples, the collection of 202 rock samples, the completion of 15 miles (24 km) of IP survey, an airborne hyperspectral survey to identify alteration minerals, a helicopter magnetometer survey, collection of gravity data from 246 stations, the collection of 84 hand samples for petrographic work, and the drilling of three holes totaling 3,505 feet (1,062 m).

The three reverse circulation drill holes were located on what Newmont called the Diatreme Vent target. The holes were generally located 2,500 feet (758 m) from the area of gold mineralization in intrusive and Lower Paleozoic sedimentary rocks known from surface sampling and older drill holes. All three of the new holes cut surficial advanced argillic alteration for the first 200 feet (61 m) and then entered variably altered diorite intrusive. Alteration of the intrusive for the most part consisted of quartz-sericite-pyrite (QSP) superimposed on an earlier potassic alteration, marked by secondary biotite replacement. Pyrite content of the QSP was variable but high, ranging up to 35% of the sample in select drill intervals, however none of the Newmont holes intersected any values of interest in precious or base metals.

Newmont's geophysical surveys will be of value in targeting future drilling at Scraper. In particular, the IP survey yielded targets of interest, including six untested chargeability anomalies, likely related to high sulfides in the subsurface.

Three general types of targets exist at Scraper: 1) disseminated zones in the altered volcanic package, 2) Carlin-type gold deposits distal to an intrusive body, both in Vinini Formation and in the Lower Plate package at depth, and 3) either porphyry-hosted base-metal or polymetallic, gold-bearing skarns associated with the intrusive itself.

Columbus Gold will seek a new joint venture partner with a view to advance drilling on the numerous untested targets at Scraper.

The historic resources and figures indicated in this press release are not NI 43-101 compliant and a qualified person has not done sufficient work to confirm the figures or to classify the historic estimates as current mineral resources. They should not be relied upon and Columbus Gold does not treat them as current.

Andy Wallace is a Certified Professional Geologist (CPG) with the American Institute of Professional Geologists and is the Qualified Person under NI 43-101 who has reviewed and approved the technical content of this news release. Mr. Wallace is a VP of Columbus Gold's U.S. subsidiary and a partner of Cordilleran Exploration Company ("Cordex"), which is conducting exploration and project generation activities for Columbus Gold.

ABOUT COLUMBUS GOLD

Columbus Gold Corporation is a gold exploration and development company operating principally in Nevada. The Company has an experienced management group with a strong background in all aspects of the acquisition, exploration, development and financing of precious metal mining projects. Columbus Gold controls a 100% interest, subject to royalties, in 24 gold projects strategically located along or near Nevada's most productive gold trends. The Company also holds a significant equity interest in Columbus Silver Corporation, an exploration company with a growing portfolio of silver projects in the Western United States.

Columbus Gold's and Columbus Silver's project activities are managed on an exclusive basis by Cordilleran Exploration Company (Cordex), owned and operated by John Livermore and Andy Wallace who have a long and successful history of gold discovery and mine development in the United States. Columbus Gold maintains active generative (prospecting) and evaluation programs and, as a key element of strategy, broadens exposure, minimizes risk and maintains focus on high priority prospects while seeking industry finance through joint ventures on selected projects. The Company currently has 13 of its projects joint ventured to major and junior mining companies, including Barrick Gold and Agnico-Eagle Mines.