Chesapeake Updates Status of the Pre-Feasibility at Metates Regional Exploration Underway On Three New Mexican Prospects

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/06/12 -- Chesapeake Gold Corp. (TSX VENTURE: CKG) ('Chesapeake' or the 'Company') wishes to report on the current status of the pre-feasibility study ('PFS') on its 100% owned Metates project located in Durango State, Mexico. In support of the PFS, Chesapeake recently announced a new NI43-101 compliant resource for Metates (see NR2-2012) which estimates the project contains a total of 19.0 million ounces gold and 519 million ounces silver (Measured + Indicated), making it one of the largest undeveloped precious metal resources in the Americas.

To date, most of the key tasks integral to the PFS such as the comminution, flotation and pressure oxidation circuits, pipelines, road construction and geotechnical studies are nearing completion. The Company, however, has been advised by their independent consultants that two critical path tasks are lagging and will delay the delivery of the results of the PFS until early second quarter 2012. One delay is related to the lag in obtaining vendor quotes from several key equipment manufacturers. Another factor is the completion of the design and costing of the zinc metal recovery (SX/EW) circuit which is now estimated to take an additional several weeks. In both cases, the delay is largely due to the extremely high work load being experienced by most consultants working in the mining and metals industry.

Chesapeake is confident the results of the PFS will generally support the results of the preliminary economic assessment (see NR1-2011) and confirm that the Metates project has the potential to be a large scale, long life, and low cash cost precious metal producer.

Regional Exploration

Besides advancing Metates towards the near term completion of the PFS, Chesapeake has also been engaged in an aggressive regional exploration program. Generative exploration has focused on the Mexican states of Durango and Sinaloa proximate to the Metates and Ranchito sites. Thus far, this program has been successful in identifying three new highly prospective properties that represent district scale opportunities with the potential to host large bulk minable precious metal and/or polymetallic deposits.

Jacky, Sinaloa State

Jacky is a significant new discovery hosting a low sulfidation epithermal system(s) characterized by multiple events of quartz veining that includes breccias, bladed quartz replacing calcite and stockworks. Preliminary exploration has identified a regional scale subvertical northwest-trending fault zone cutting intrusive rocks which hosts a strongly silicified mineralized zone at least 1,200 meters long, up to 100 meters wide and with a vertical extent of more than 400 meters. The regional fault which controls the mineralization extends at least eight kilometers, well beyond the limits of the known mineralization, and presents a very attractive target for further exploration. In addition, mineralized quartz veins are also associated with several large peripheral areas of strong argillic alteration.

Channel sampling across partial sections of the quartz veins and stockworks has returned the following results over different elevations along this structure:

--  21 meters of 1.5 g/t gold and 50 g/t silver
--  6 meters of 6.0 g/t gold and 143 g/t silver
--  7 meters of 1.4 g/t gold and 23 g/t silver
--  4 meters of 1.0 g/t gold and 64 g/t silver

Jacky is a grass roots discovery by Chesapeake and the Company has applied for a large 11,000 hectares concession covering multiple target areas within this new district. The style of mineralization present at Jacky is similar to that at several large precious metal producers in the Sierra Madre of Mexico including the Palmarejo and Pinos Altos mines.

San Ramon, Sinaloa State

San Ramon is a gold-copper-silver deposit where extensive garnet-magnetite-hematite-malachite mineralization has developed within exoskarn developed along a regional contact zone between Cretaceous limestones and Tertiary granodiorites. To date, preliminary geologic mapping and sampling have identified two main mineralized zones along six kilometers of this limestone-granodiorite contact. This favorable contact goes under post-mineral cover to the northwest and generally dips shallowly to the southwest. These two zones are three kilometers apart and separated by an area of cover and sparse mineralized outcrops.

The Northwest zone crops out over an area measuring 700 meters by 500 meters and hosts skarn type mineralization over a thickness ranging from 10 to 50 meters. An envelope of disseminated oxides and sulfides developed in jasperiodal limestone commonly overlies the skarn, adding several meters in thickness to the mineralization. Channel sampling in this zone has returned the following results:

--  42 meters of 0.5 g/t gold, 45 g/t silver and 1.7% copper
--  8 meters of 1.2 g/t gold, 96 g/t silver and 2.0% copper
--  20 meters of 0.3 g/t gold, 91 g/t silver and 1.0% copper

Skarn type mineralization in the Southeast zone can be traced discontinuously over an area measuring at least 600 meters by 100 meters, with a mineralized thickness from 10 to 50 meters. Channel sampling in this zone has returned the following assay results:

--  90 meters of 0.9 g/t gold, 40 g/t silver and 1.2% copper
--  32 meters of 0.9 g/t gold, 113 g/t silver and 1.5% copper
--  20 meters of 0.5 g/t gold, 37 g/t silver and 0.7% copper

Chesapeake has consolidated a large land position covering the entire extent of this regional contact zone. The flat lying geometry, favorable topography, consistently good grades and known extent of the skarn mineralization, together with its possible extension to the northwest makes San Ramon an exceptional exploration target.

Nicole, Durango State

Mineralization in the core area of the Nicole prospect bears a strong similarity to the sediment and intrusive hosted mineralization found at Metates. Abundant sulfides are noted in outcrop including pyrite, sphalerite and enargite as stockwork veinlets and disseminations. As at Metates, these sulfides are commonly associated with strong hydrothermal alteration. Exploration to date has outlined an area of Metates type mineralization measuring about 600 meters by 500 meters, from which channel samples have returned the following results:

--  135 meters of 0.8 g/t gold, 16 g/t silver and 0.74% zinc
--  50 meters of 0.4 g/t gold, 13 g/t silver and 1.0% zinc
--  35 meters of 0.7 g/t gold, 20 g/t silver and 0.48% zinc
--  20 meters of 0.4 g/t gold, 116 g/t silver and 0.53% lead

At higher elevations peripheral to the core area of Metates type mineralization there are epithermal quartz veins with higher precious metals and lower base metal values. As such, the mineralized system at Nicole may be zoned with the potential for additional Metates type mineralization at depth. Channel samples across these quartz veins have returned:

--  4 meters of 0.3 g/t gold and 397 g/t silver
--  2 meters of 7.3 g/t gold and 810 g/t silver
--  10 meters of 0.1 g/t gold and 83 g/t silver

Chesapeake can leverage its knowledge of the geologically similar Metates deposit to efficiently explore and evaluate the Nicole prospect.

Systematic exploration which includes geologic mapping, sampling and trenching is currently underway on these projects. Follow up geophysical surveys including magnetic and IP-resistivity are planned for the second quarter. Based on successful exploration results Chesapeake has budgeted to drill at least one of these projects in 2012.

Currently, Chesapeake has over $45 million in working capital.

ALS Global was the analytical laboratory used for the samples included in this release. Sample preparation was performed in Hermosillo and Zacatecas, Mexico with analyses done in Vancouver, Canada.

Gary Parkison, CPG, Chesapeake Vice President Development and a Qualified Person as defined by NI43-101, has reviewed the technical information presented in this release in regards to the Metates project. Alberto Galicia, P. Geo, Exploration Manager for Chesapeake and a Qualified Person as defined by NI43-101, has reviewed the technical information in this release in regards to the exploration prospects.

For more information on Chesapeake, please visit our website at www.chesapeakegold.com.

CHESAPEAKE GOLD CORP

P. Randy Reifel, President

Some of the statements contained in this release are forward-looking statements, such as estimates and statements that address future events and conditions that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals which are subject to various risks and uncertainties in relation to the Company. The assumptions used in the preparation of such statements although considered reasonable at the time of preparation may prove to be imprecise and as such, actual results in each case could differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Chesapeake Gold Corp.

Investor Relations

604-731-1094
www.chesapeakegold.com