GBG - Great Basin gold Repays Senior Secured Notes

GBG - Great Basin gold Repays Senior Secured Notes                              
GREAT BASIN GOLD LIMITED                                                        
(Incorporated in Canada and registered as an External Company in South          
Africa)                                                                         
(Registration No. 2006/021304/10)                                               
Share Code: GBG      ISIN Number: CA3901241057                                  
("Great Basin" or "the Company")                                                
GREAT BASIN GOLD REPAYS SENIOR SECURED NOTES                                    
ACKNOWLEDGES WALTER SEGSWORTH`S PAST SERVICE                                    
March 16, 2011, Vancouver, BC - Great Basin Gold Ltd. ("Great Basin Gold" or    
the "Company"), (TSX: GBG; NYSE Amex: GBG; JSE: GBG) today announced that it    
has repaid the 2008 Senior Secured Notes ("Notes")with the proceeds of the      
previously announced Term Loan Facility from Credit Suisse AG. The facility     
was increased from US$60 million to US$70million to maximize leverage from      
this low-cost facility. The facility has been fully drawn down and has a term   
of 4 years, is repayable in quarterly installments commencing September 2011,   
and bears interest at a premium of 3.75% over the 3 month US LIBOR rate. It     
is secured by the Company`s Nevada assets. As part of the facility, the         
Company executed a zero-cost-collar hedging program, consisting of a total of   
117,500 ounces of gold spread over a 4 year term commencing in January 2012.    
The call option price was fixed at US$1,930 per ounce with the put option at    
US$1,050 per ounce and as long as gold trades within these prices there is no   
cash cost to the hedge.                                                         
The Company also announces that it has now filed its consolidated annual        
audited financial statements and related Management`s Discussion and Analysis   
for the year ended December 31, 2010 on SEDAR.com and on the Company`s          
website. The audited financial results are identical to the preliminary         
results released on February 24, 2011.                                          
In other corporate news, Mr. Walter Segsworth has resigned as a director of     
the Company. The Board is in the process of nominating additional directors     
for the June 2011 shareholders meeting which will include two women             
candidates with solid financial and mining backgrounds. The proposed            
candidates will bring a wealth of experience and fresh views to the Board and   
will help ensure a better gender balance on it.                                 
Ronald Thiessen, Chairman, stated "On behalf of the Board, I would like to      
personally thank Walter for his several years of hard work and thoughtful       
insight into development and operational issues. We wish him all the best in    
his other endeavours."                                                          
Ferdi Dippenaar, CEO, commented "We were very pleased with the speed and        
efficiency with which Credit Suisse was able to finalize the loan and then      
upsize it. This low-cost and flexible facility is a significant improvement     
in our cost of capital over the burden of the 2008 Senior Secured Notes."       
Great Basin Gold is a mining company engaged in the exploration and             
development of gold properties. The Company is currently focused on its two     
emerging mines in the world`s two richest gold regions. The Hollister gold      
mine is located on the Carlin Trend in Nevada, USA and the Burnstone gold       
mine is located in the Witwatersrand goldfield of South Africa.                 
For additional details on Great Basin and its gold properties, please visit     
the Company`s website at www.grtbasin.com or contact Investor Services at:      
Tsholo Serunye in South Africa               +27 (0) 11 301 1800                
Michael Curlook in North America             +1 (888) 633 9332                  
Barbara Cano at Breakstone Group in the USA   +1 (646) 452 2334                 
No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained   
in this news release.                                                           
For more information on the Company and the risks inherent in its business,     
Investors should review the Company`s annual Form 40-F filing with the United   
States Securities and Exchange Commission and its home jurisdiction filings     
that are available at www.sedar.com.                                            
Sponsor                                                                         
Nedbank Capital                                                                 
Date: 16/03/2011 14:30:01 Supplied by www.sharenet.co.za                     
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