02/15/2006- Work Underway at Chuckwalla and Copper

[Franko10 ™]

Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.: Work Underway at Chuckwalla and Copper Hill

13:35 EST Wednesday, February 15, 2006

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan (Business Wire) -- Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:GWG) (OTCBB:GWMGF) - The Company reports that the 2005/2006 winter exploration and development programs are underway at the Company's Chuckwalla copper/gold silver project in California and the recently-acquired Copper Hill copper/molybdenum/gold project in Nevada.

The grid over the Chuckwalla property has been extended again and the area covered by the 2005 soil geochemistry and Mobile Metal Ion ("MMI") surveys expanded to completely define the Big Boy, Black Calcite and newer areas of highly anomalous copper-in-soil values. Last year's soil sampling produced copper-in-soil values up to 3,220 parts per million ("ppm") copper at Big Boy and up to 2,510 ppm copper at Black Calcite. In addition, surface outcrop sampling of newly discovered mineralization, within the Big Boy geochemical anomaly, yielded assays between 2.0% and 3.7% copper, 11.0 g/t (0.32 ounces per ton) and 345.0 g/t (10.07 ounces per ton) silver and between 0.25 g/t (0.007 ounces per ton) and 15.4 g/t (0.45 ounces per ton) gold. Drill permitting is pending, through the Bureau of Land Management, over defined areas at Big Boy and Black Calcite.

At the Copper Hill project, in Nevada, work crews have commenced a large MMI survey over the property. The goal of the survey is to target the source, at depth, of two types of mineralization observed in previous drilling. The first target is a major porphyry-type system hosting copper, molybdenum and gold. Drilling in the 1980s intersected 123.5 metres (405 feet) of a mineralized dyke-like rock, with anomalous molybdenum values, and copper values increasing down the hole. The hole was stopped with the bottom 15.2 metres (50 feet) assaying 0.15% copper. Geology reports written at the time suggest the feature is related to a major porphyry body.

The second target type is bonanza gold mineralization that could represent the gold source for many of the small gold mines in the project area. These mines have produced in excess of 500,000 ounces of gold over the years-generally from shallow workings.

"Our goal is to develop a major copper resource in the area, with significant gold and silver credits," states Gary Billingsley, President. "We plan to significantly advance both projects in 2006, although the availability of men and equipment-especially for drilling-continues to be a challenge. We feel the demand for copper, and metals in general, will remain strong in the long-term, and we believe developing North American sources is not only prudent, but necessary."

The work programs are carried out under the direction of John Pearson, MSc., P.Eng., VP Exploration and the Qualified Person on the project.

Gary L. Billingsley, C.A., P.Eng., P.Geo.

President

CUSIP: 39141Y 10 3

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept resp onsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the foregoing contents.

Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:GWG) (OTC Bulletin Board:GWMGF)

Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.
Gordon Dent
[phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.gwmg.ca
OR
Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.
226 Cardinal Crescent
Saskatoon, SK S7L 6H8