MacDonald Mines Announces Closing of Flow-Through Private Placement

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Aug. 20, 2010) - MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. ("MacDonald" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:BMK) wishes to announce the closing of a private placement financing (the "Offering") for total gross proceeds of $2,918,000. All shares issued were on a flow through basis.

The Company issued 15,357,894 units (the "Units") at a price of $0.19 per Unit. Each Unit is comprised of one "flow through" common share and one half common share purchase warrant. Each full warrant entitles the holder to purchase one common share of the Company for $0.25 per share and expires 24 months from the date of closing. In addition, the Company paid broker fees in the form of cash compensation of $141,300 and issued 736,842 non-transferable compensation options, with each such option entitling the holder to acquire one Unit at a price of $0.19 per Units for a period of 24 months following closing. All securities issued pursuant to the Offering are subject to a restricted period of four months and one day following closing of the Offering. The Offering is subject to receipt of final approval from the TSX Venture Exchange.

As part of the financing, a total of 10,526,315 Units were sold to the MineralFields Group. In addition, 3,021,000 Units were issued to related parties of the Company.

The Company intends to use the proceeds of the Offering for exploration efforts in the "Ring of Fire" area near James Bay, Ontario.

About MineralFields, Pathway and First Canadian Securities®

MineralFields Group (a division of Pathway Asset Management), based in Toronto, Vancouver Montreal and Calgary, is a mining fund with significant assets under administration that offers its tax-advantaged super flow-through limited partnerships to investors throughout Canada as well as hard-dollar resource limited partnerships to investors throughout the world. Pathway Asset Management also specializes in the manufacturing and distribution of structured products and mutual funds (including the Pathway Multi Series Funds Inc. corporate-class mutual fund series). Information about MineralFields Group is available at www.mineralfields.com. First Canadian Securities® (a division of Limited Market Dealer Inc.) is active in leading resource financings (both flow-through and hard dollar PIPE financings) on competitive, effective and service-friendly terms, and offers investment banking, mergers and acquisitions, and mining industry consulting, services to resource companies. MineralFields and Pathway have financed several hundred mining and oil and gas exploration companies to date through First Canadian Securities®.

About MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd.

MacDonald Mines is a mineral exploration company with an established exploration history in the Canadian Northlands. MacDonald Mines has set upon a strategic direction of exploration with particular focus on nickel, chrome, copper and zinc in the "Ring of Fire" area of the James Bay Lowlands of Northern Ontario.

On its McNugget Property, new volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) mineralization of substance has been discovered. Four VMS mineralized greenstone fold limbs, all of which have now yielded VMS mineralization over a potential cumulative strike length of approximately 20 kilometres, have been identified and the McNugget Property has the potential to host a new VMS camp with characteristics similar to those seen at Matagami or Noranda in Quebec.

MacDonald's highly prospective Hulbert-Salo Property contains very conductive and discrete targets within a layered magnetic structure, which is typical of magmatic massive sulphides containing nickel. The Hulbert-Salo appears to have the potential to host a Voisey's Bay-type nickel deposit.

The Company's Big Mac Property exhibits high-priority nickel and copper targets with geological and geophysical signatures similar to the significant chrome discoveries of Freewest and KWG-Spider.

More detailed information is available on the website at www.macdonaldmines.com.

Administration

A total of 1,625,000 options were issued to consultants of the Company on August 20, 2010 under the terms of the incentive stock option plan of the Company filed with the TSX Venture Exchange and approved by shareholders at the last Annual General Meeting of Shareholders of the Company held on June 17, 2010. The options are exercisable at a price of $0.18 per share for a period of four years and are subject to a four-month and one day hold period from the date of the issuance.

Cautionary Statement:

The foregoing information may contain forward-looking statements relating to the future performance of MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. Forward-looking statements, specifically those concerning future performance, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from MacDonald Mines plans and expectations. These plans, expectations, risks and uncertainties are detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by MacDonald Mines with the TSX Venture Exchange and securities regulators. MacDonald Mines does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For more information, please contact

MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd.
Brent Nykoliation
Vice President, Business Development
(800) 818-5442 or (416) 364-4986
(416) 364-2753 (FAX)
or
MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd.
Quentin Yarie, P.Geo
Vice President, Exploration
(800) 818-5442 or (416) 364-4986
(416) 364-2753 (FAX)
or
MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd.
Kirk McKinnon
President & CEO
(800) 818-5442 or (416) 364-4986
(416) 364-2753 (FAX)
info@macdonaldmines.com
www.macdonaldmines.com