Norsemont Mining Provides Constancia Project Update

Additional High Grade Copper-gold Intercepts Including 63.40 metres @ 2.52% Cu Eq, and 80.30 metres @ 1.52% Cu Eq

TORONTO, Ontario and LIMA, Peru, December 7, 2010 -

    Share Issued and Outstanding: 82,701,945
    TSX: NOM
    BVL: NOM

Norsemont Mining Inc. ("the Company") (TSX: NOM, BVL: NOM) today
announced the results of ongoing exploration drilling at the Company's
Pampacancha discovery, located 2.5 kilometres south east of the Constancia
Project's planned first mine development ("Phase 1 Mine").

Drilling at the southern edge of Pampacancha Main Body continues
intercepting high-grade Cu-Mo-Au mineralization demonstrating further
extension of the mineralized body at the southern limits of the known
mineralisation. The latest result from holes PO-10-040 and PO-10-042 are very
encouraging and demonstrate the southern extension of high Cu-Mo-Au values in
the skarn mineralisation and a high grade epithermal gold vein overprint
returning up to 62 gpt Au over 2.65 metres.

Commenting, Norsemont President and COO Mr. Robert Baxter said: "These
results demonstrate the excellent upside potential to improve the economics
of the Constancia project from additional exploration of satellite deposits.
When you add these results to the ongoing optimization studies we can only
expect the end result will be a strongly robust project. Exploration drilling
with five diamond drill rigs is continuing."

Norsemont has previously announced that SRK Vancouver has been engaged to
conduct a scoping study on the Pampacancha resource where the Company expects
to be able to exploit the high grade copper-gold and molybdenum
mineralization by open-pit and underground mining methods. It is anticipated
that the scoping study will be completed by Q2 2011.

At Pampacancha, accumulated meterage from 2008 to date totals 18,425.80m,
with only 11,199.60m (44 holes) targeting the Main Body. The Main Body covers
an area of approximately 1,000m NS-NW direction and 300-400m wide. Drilling
in Sector 1, at the southern part of the Main Body, continues to report
high-grade Cu-Mo-Au intercepts. Selected results include:

- Hole PO-10-040, located 200m SSE of hole PR-08-008 (discovery hole),
returned 80.30m (from 24.15 to 104.45m depth) averaging 0.90% Cu, 530ppm Mo
and 0.40g/t Au (1.52% Cu-Eq), including 21.50m (from 66.80 to 88.30m depth)
returning 1.66% Cu, 384ppm Mo and 0.81g/t Au (2.43% Cu Eq).

- Hole PO-10-042, drilled to the south from the same platform as hole
PO-10-40, intercepted 63.40m (from 4.00 to 67.40m depth) with 0.50% Cu,
339ppm Mo and 3.02g/t Au (2.52% Cu-Eq). Additionally, this hole encountered
two high grade bonanza gold mineralization structures, the first 2.65m (from
18.85 to 21.50m depth) returning 62g/t Au, 60.2g/t Ag, 0.66% Cu and 589ppm
Mo, and another interval of 0.85m (from 62.45 to 63.30m depth), assaying
19.36g/t Au and 18.20g/t Ag.

Two rigs are currently drilling at Pampacancha, and from January 2011 an
infill drilling campaign is planned at the Main Body to upgrade the resource
classification from inferred to measured and indicated. This campaign
contemplates an additional 6,000 metres of diamond drilling at Sectors 1 and
2.

At Chiloroya South, drilling is currently under way at the Skarn Target 1
(where hole SR-10-013 reported 3m with 242.5g/t Au, September 2010 News
Release) totalling 3,260m to date, most of them DDH. Two rigs are currently
working in this area.

Drilling at the Chilloroya South porphyry "Target 3" resumed last month,
with one UDR rig that has the capacity to drill to depths of 1 kilometre. To
date, two additional holes have been drilled (holes SO-10-012 and SO-10-015,
totalling 943.50m). Assays are still pending for these two holes.

Significant intervals from the current drill program are reported in the
table below:

     HOLE_ID    AZ      DIP    Length  StartAt   EndAt   COG   Cu    Mo
                                                               per   ppm

    PO-10-037   12        -75      22     25.5    47.5   0.1   0.2    89
                                    6      116     122   0.1  0.22   736
    PO-10-038  110        -75      13       77      90   0.1  0.23    29
    PO-10-039  275        -75    8.15    42.65    50.8   0.1  0.24   171
    PO-10-040  350        -75     9.8      7.5    17.3   0.1  0.41   144
                                 80.3    24.15  104.45   0.1   0.9   530
                    including    26.2    24.15   50.35   0.5  1.05   952
                          and   10.55     39.8   50.35     1  1.16   995
                         also   40.45    56.75    97.2   0.2  1.07   417
                    including   35.25    56.75      92   0.3  1.16   421
                          and   31.55    56.75    88.3   0.4  1.24   464
                         also    21.5     66.8    88.3   0.5  1.66   394
                    including    6.25     66.8   73.05     1  4.42   582
    PO-10-042  170        -75    63.4        4    67.4   0.2   0.5   339
                    including    2.65    18.85    21.5        0.66   589
                          and   32.45       30   62.45   0.5  0.71   488
                         also   11.35     41.5   52.85     1  1.14   908
                    including    0.85    62.45    63.3        0.15    52

    (table continued) 

       Ag      Au      Pb       Zn    CuEq
       gpt     gpt     per     per     per

      2.04    0.06    0.01     0.11   0.31
      3.45    0.14    0.07     0.12   0.82
      4.51     0.1    0.05      0.1   0.34
      2.93    0.17    0.06     0.17   0.47
      1.58     0.2    0.02     0.05   0.63
      4.88     0.4    0.07     0.14   1.52
      7.39    0.41    0.12     0.29   1.98
     12.25    0.49    0.08     0.15    2.2
      4.17    0.51    0.05     0.08   1.67
      4.09    0.56    0.04     0.07   1.79
      4.45    0.61    0.05     0.07   1.94
      4.84    0.81    0.05     0.07   2.43
       4.4    1.42       0     0.03   5.67
      5.35    3.02    0.05     0.06   2.52
      60.2      62     0.6     0.67  38.31
      3.85     0.3    0.02     0.04   1.24
      4.78    0.59    0.02     0.03   2.11
      18.2   19.36    1.68     1.85

    Note 1: Copper equivalent values (CuEq) are estimated using long-term
    metal prices including: copper US$2.00 per lb, molybdenum US$13.00 per
    lb, silver US$12 per oz and gold US$ 800 per oz.

    Note 2: All analytical results presented are carried out by SGS-Lakefield
    laboratories in Lima, Peru. All appropriate QA-QC measures are adopted by
    both the laboratory and the company involving the use of duplicates and
    standards. The intercepts presented are not true widths.

Constancia Mine Optimisation Study

The Phase 1 Mine pit optimization study has been completed showing
positive results projecting a substantial increase in minable ore. The
revised mine schedule, based on the new 70,000 tonne per day grinding circuit
design, has also been completed. The focus is now on finalizing the capital
and operating costs associated with the increased throughput and redesigned
grinding circuit. The final 43-101 updated feasibility study report is
expected by Q1 2011.

In preparation for the development of the Constancia project, which will
be initiated in early 2011, all off-site requirements, including detailed
design activities and permitting requirements for power, the access road and
port, have been initiated.

About Norsemont Mining - Norsemont is a mineral exploration and
development company advancing the extensive Constancia Copper-Gold project in
Southern Peru. A September 2009 independent definitive feasibility study
indicates that the Phase 1 Mine development at the Constancia Project has a
NPV (8%) of $931.8M and an IRR of 26.9% (based on $2.75/Lb Cu) and can
support a 15-year mine producing an annual average of approx. 150 million
pounds of copper, 1,180 tonnes of molybdenum and 1.5 million ounces of
silver. Constancia's Phase 1 Mine has a proven and probable reserve of 277.4
million tonnes grading at 0.43% Cu, 0.012% Mo, 3.69 g/t Ag. Exploration
drilling at Constancia's satellite Pampacancha and Chilloroya South
discoveries are expected to add significant tonnage to the global resource.
The company's shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the
symbol NOM, and on the Bolsa de Valores, Lima (BVL) also under the symbol
NOM.

The technical information provided in this news release was reviewed and
approved by Robert. W. Baxter (MAusIMM), the President, COO and a director of
the Company and a qualified person for the purposes of National Instrument
43-101.

For further information:

    Mr. Bob Baxter                       Patrick Evans
    President and COO                    CEO
    Norsemont Mining Inc                 Norsemont Mining Inc
    Phone:  +51-1-99352-6473             Phone: +1-416-670-5114
    E-Mail: investors@norsemont.com  

    Web Site: www.norsemont.com

Mr. Bob Baxter, President and COO, Norsemont Mining Inc, Phone: +51-1-99352-6473, E-Mail: investors at norsemont.com ; Patrick Evans, CEO, Norsemont Mining Inc, Phone: +1-416-670-5114