OSBURN, Idaho, Dec. 19, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Atlas Mining Company (OTCBB:ALMI), an exploration stage natural resource and mining company with an underground mining contracting business, announced today that internationally recognized minerals consultant Paul Adler, who is also part of the company's strategic development group, has been interviewed by IPOdesesktop.com as part of a continuing series profiling the company's advancements.
The interview, conducted by IPOdesktop's Editor Francis Gaskins, can be heard on RealAudio at: http://gaskinsco.com/almi2.ram and Windows Media at: http://gaskinsco.com/almi2.asx.
Adler is President of The Phlogiston Company, a Macon, Georgia-based consulting firm that has worked for companies throughout the world, representing many types of industrial minerals.
As he relates in the interview, Adler is working closely with Atlas Mining in the production, processing and sales of halloysite, an extremely high quality clay, from its Dragon Mine in Utah. The clay is scheduled to be on the market by the first quarter of 2003.
A well-known industry expert, especially in the area of clay processing systems, Adler during the interview says the exceptional and unprecedented quality of the halloysite clay deposit at the Dragon Mine is far superior to anything ever discovered in the global industry. "Arguably," he notes, "it is the finest discovery in a mineral deposit at the high end," and its potential applications may ultimately yield per ton prices more than double the current $500 level, resulting in a significant return on investment.
Adler also points out that the halloysite clay is "an environmentally friendly mineral" ... whose time released properties will allow for improvements in its potential uses in agriculture and medicine, in addition to a host of industrial applications.
William Jacobson, president of Atlas Mining Company, said: "Our goal is to become the nation's largest producer of halloysite clay. Paul has been extremely instrumental in helping us reach this point, and we look forward to significant penetration of new markets in the year ahead."
An earlier interview with Jacobson is available on Real Audio at http://gaskinsco.com/almi.ram and on Windows Media at http://gaskinsco.com/almi.asx.
About Atlas Mining Company
Atlas Mining has mining and timber properties located in the Silver Valley of Shoshone County, in North Idaho. It also has interest in a halloysite clay property in Juab County, Utah, and, in the past, has pursued exploration targets in Mexico.
Safe Harbor Statement -- As a cautionary note to investors, certain matters discussed in this press release may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such matters involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including the following: changes in economic conditions; general competitive factors; the Company's ability to execute its business model and strategic plans; and the risks described from time to time in the Company's SEC filings.