News Release

TSX Venture Symbol: GWG
US Symbol: GWMGF
CUSIP 3914Y 10 3

May 23, 2008

RISING FERTILIZER PRICES BOOST ATTRACTIVENESS OF PHOSPHATE POTENTIAL AT HOIDAS LAKE

Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. (“GWMG” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that with the sharp increases in the price of phosphate-based products, the Company is further evaluating the economic potential of phosphate as a byproduct at its Hoidas Lake Rare Earth Elements (“REE”) property located 50 km northeast of Uranium City in northern Saskatchewan.

One of the main rare-earth-bearing ore minerals is the phosphate mineral apatite, the principal ore of phosphorous used in fertilizer. Certain phosphate-based products, such as Diammonium Phosphate have sold for in excess of $1,000 per tonne, providing a solid rationale to further examine the potential of phosphate as an economic byproduct.

Based on the data compiled for the 43-101 Resource Estimate prepared in 2007, the phosphate values range from a minimum grade of 0.05% to a maximum grade of 40.9%, with a mean or average value of 17.7%. The phosphate content will be further evaluated from the results of the recent winter drill program and in the proposed summer drilling program.

Jim Engdahl, President and CEO of Great Western Minerals Group says, “Our focus remains on the rare earth sector, but if we have an attractive by-product potential in our deposit, we are going to exploit that to increase the potential revenue and profitability. In addition, the results from our winter drilling program will also give us a better indication of the potential phosphate resource and further refine our economic strategy moving forward.”

Engdahl adds, “We remain encouraged by the fact that we still have only drilled 1000 metres along the 10,000-metre section of known showings, and to a depth of only 300 metres. As we drill deeper, we continue to intersect new zones at depth and parallel to the original JAK structure. With the JAK Zone open along strike and to depth, this still leaves tremendous potential for the rest of the property, not only for REE, but for the phosphate as well. We look forward to our planned summer drill program further increasing this potential.”

Gary L. Billingsley, P.Eng., P.Geo., is the Qualified Person responsible for reviewing the contents of this release.

Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. is a Canadian based company exploring for, and developing, strategic metal resources in North America. Pursuing a vertically-integrated business model, the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary Great Western Technologies Inc., located in Troy, Michigan, produces a variety of specialty alloys for use in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. These “designer” alloys include those containing copper, aluminum, nickel, cobalt and the rare earth elements.

Jim Engdahl.
President

For further information, please contact Ron Malashewski, Manager of Investor Relations at (306) 659-4500. Email inquiries should be made to info@gwmg.ca and the company website is located at www.gwmg.ca. Inquiries by direct mail should be addressed to Great Western Minerals Group Ltd., 226 Cardinal Crescent, Saskatoon, SK S7L 6H8

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information: The statements made in this News Release may contain certain forward-looking statements. Actual events or results may differ from the Company's expectations. Certain risk factors may also affect the actual results achieved by the Company.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.