Rio Cristal Announces Update on Review by the BC Securities Commission of Resource Estimate and Technical Report on its Bongara Project

January 9th, 2013

Vancouver, Canada and Lima, Peru - January 9, 2013 - Rio Cristal Resources Corporation (the "Company" or "Rio Cristal") (TSX-V: RCZ) (BVL: RCZ) announces an update to the Company's December 12, 2012 news release concerning a resource estimate and technical report on its Bongara project in north-central Peru, and the ongoing technical review by the British Columbia Securities Commission (the "BCSC").

The Company is coordinating the preparation of a revised National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") technical report dated effective January 31, 2012 prepared for the Company by John Brophy, P.Geol. (the "Technical Report"), subject to the BCSC's approval, which will replace the technical report and mineral resource estimate prepared by Mr. Brophy on behalf of the Company and filed on the SEDAR website on March 2, 2012.

As a result of the concerns raised by the BCSC in relation to the methods, parameters and assumptions used for estimating mineral resources at the Bongara project, Mr. Brophy has determined in conjunction with the Company to remove from the report the calculation of any mineral resources. Mr. Brophy has determined that additional metallurgical analysis is required in order to produce a resource estimate required for a NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource.

The final Technical Report will therefore focus on exploration and metallurgical work completed to the effective date of the Technical Report and will recommend that further metallurgical work by the Company be conducted, which may enable the future preparation of a mineral resource estimate compliant with NI 43-101. The Company will issue a further news release once the Technical Report has been finalized and filed on the SEDAR website.

Accordingly, the Company retracts the disclosure of mineral resources at the Bongara project in the Company's news release dated February 21, 2012 and confirms that investors should not rely on the previously disclosed mineral resources until a new mineral resource estimate is prepared and supported by an independent technical report compliant with NI 43-101.

The Company plans to work towards preparation of a NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate at Bongara after additional metallurgical work is completed by the Company. Completion of such additional work remains subject to additional funding.

For further information for investors, please contact the Company via email at investor@riocristalresources.com.

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

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" under applicable Canadian securities law, being the statements as to the Company's plans to work towards the preparation of a compliant resource estimate. Although management considers such statements to be reasonable, actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Rio Cristal's expectations include the failure to obtain sufficient financing to complete the metallurgical work and inconclusive or negative results thereof, as well as changes in the price of zinc. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information.
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