Cardero Signs Formal Exploration Alliance Agreement With Newmont in NW Argentina

Cardero Resource Corp. ("Cardero" or the "Company") (TSX: CDU)(AMEX: CDY)(FRANKFURT: CR5) is pleased to announce that it has signed the formal agreement with respect to the commercial terms for the formation of a regional exploration alliance ("Alliance") with Newmont Ventures Limited ("Newmont"), a subsidiary of Newmont Mining Corporation (NYSE: NEM) to jointly conduct exploration for a variety of gold deposit types in north-west Argentina. Cardero will provide its comprehensive regional experience to prioritize targets and to manage and operate the exploration program on behalf of the Alliance. In return, Cardero will have access to Newmont's propriety exploration technologies, including proven ultra-low detection geochemical and geophysical techniques, as well as the specialist technical expertise of the global gold mining giant.

Newmont Cardero Exploration Alliance

The Alliance, which has been in effect since September 1, 2007 (see NR07-17), operates within the northern portion of Cardero's Sediment Hosted Vein (SHV) project area ("Alliance Area"), where Cardero holds twelve gold bearing properties encompassing some 1,200 square kilometres as part of its SHV Gold targeting initiative. The Alliance Area covers an area of approximately 36,000 square kilometres. Any properties acquired by the Alliance will be held, initially, 50:50 by Cardero and Newmont, subject to dilution for failure to contribute to ongoing exploration.

Newmont will not, by virtue of its participation in the Alliance, earn any interest in any existing Cardero properties in the Alliance Area. However, it will have the right to elect to earn an interest in certain Cardero properties through separate option agreements. Existing Cardero properties located within the Alliance area have been designated as either Option Properties or Excluded Properties. Cardero has excluded four properties from the Alliance (Organullo, Piriquitas, Chingolo/Providencia and La Poma/Concordia). All other Cardero properties within the Alliance Area have been designated as Option Properties. Newmont has the right to elect to enter into an option to acquire an interest in any (or all) of the Option Properties at any time during the term of the Alliance upon prescribed terms.

Work Completed to Date

Sampling, using Newmont's proprietary Bulk Leach Extractable Gold (BLEG) methodology, began in mid-September 2007. Sampling has been continuous since that time, with 3 or 4 dedicated BLEG sampling teams employed at all times. To date, 1,117 samples have been collected, screening an area of approximately 5,000 square kilometres. Newmont completed interpretation of Aster satellite imagery of the Alliance Area in October 2007 and this interpretation helped prioritise areas for BLEG sampling.

Future Work

Partial analytical results from the BLEG sampling campaign have been returned and interpretation of these results in progress by the Company in conjunction with Newmont geologists and geochemists. Targets identified will be prioritised for field follow-up. This work will ideally place the Alliance to rapidly advance identified targets.

Terms of the Exploration Alliance Agreement

Expenditures under the Exploration Alliance Agreement will take place over 3 separate phases:

Phase I - Newmont and Cardero will jointly fund USD 1,500,000 in exploration expenditures within the Alliance Area on or before September 1, 2010.

Phase II - If the parties elect to continue after Phase I, then Cardero will be responsible for incurring an additional USD 1,500,000 in Phase II expenditures in the Alliance Area. The funding for such expenditures will come from a private placement by Newmont in Cardero in that amount (at a price per unit equal to the 30 trading day closing average price of Cardero's common shares at that time).

Phase III - If the parties elect to continue after Phase II, then Cardero will be responsible for funding an additional USD 1,500,000 in Phase III expenditures in the Alliance Area. The funding for such expenditures will come from the exercise by Newmont of the warrants received in the Phase II private placement (which will have an exercise price of 150% of the unit subscription price in Phase II).

Cardero is the manager of the Alliance, and is entitled to charge a 10% management fee. Any properties acquired by the Alliance will be held, initially, 50:50 by Cardero and Newmont, subject to dilution for failure by a party to contribute its pro rata share of ongoing expenditures. Upon the unanimous decision of the management committee, or at the election of either party upon the Alliance having spent USD 100,000 on that specific Alliance acquired property, any Alliance acquired property can be made the subject of a separate joint venture (at which point Newmont may elect to become the manager of such specific project joint venture). Following designation of an Alliance property as a specific project joint venture, expenditures will be jointly funded until the completion of 10,000 metres of drilling, at which time the party that is acting as manager may elect to earn an additional 12% by solely funding all expenditures necessary to complete a positive feasibility study identifying reserves on the property. If the manager exercises such option, it will have the further option to earn an additional 13% (overall 75% interest) by solely funding the expenditures necessary to reach the commencement of commercial production. If the manager exercises this second option it will recover the non-manager's share of such costs, with interest, from 90% of the non-manager's share of distributions from the project.