Yellowknife (July 09/01) - If Darnley Bay Resources Ltd. can secure some cash backing, then company president Leon LaPrairie says he'll be headed to Paulatuk to diamond hunt.

At last week's annual general meeting, the company re-elected its board of directors and a $7-million budget.

Despite low share value, LaPrairie maintains an optimistic outlook when it comes to the diamond-seeking company. A year ago prices per share hovered around $1 but in recent months have plummeted to 27 cents.

"The whole market is low," said LaPrairie, adding the company is not active on the property now.

The area is a 10,000 square kilometre plot in the Inuvialuit settlement region, located 400 kilometres east of Inuvik on the Arctic coast.

Last year De Beer's invested $500,000 so that Darnley could continue the till sampling project it started in 1999.

"In the meantime we have major diamond companies interested," he said, but wouldn't tell who it is.

In the meantime the company is at a standstill.

LaPrairie remained confident though that diamonds will be found at Darnley Bay, calling the pinpointed area the "strongest isolated gravity anomaly in the world."

"We're looking at a bull's eye," he said.

He described the diamonds in the area as being small but plentiful.

Darnley Bay Resources (DBL) is listed on the Canadian Venture Exchange.