Pinetree Capital Ltd. Acquires Securities of Torch River Resources Ltd.

TORONTO, CANADA--(Marketwire - Jan. 30, 2012) - Pinetree Capital Ltd. (TSX:PNP), announces that on January 27, 2012, it acquired ownership of 1,000,000 common shares ("Common Shares") and 1,000,000 common share purchase warrants (the "Warrants") of Torch River Resources Ltd. ("Torch River"). Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to acquire one additional common share at a price of $0.10 until January 26, 2014. In the event that the Warrants are fully exercised, these holdings represent approximately 5.1% of the total issued and outstanding common shares of Torch River as of January 27, 2012, calculated on a partially diluted basis assuming the exercise of the Warrants only. As a result of this transaction, Pinetree held, as at January 27, 2012, an aggregate of 6,625,000 common shares of Torch River, including the Common Shares, and rights to acquire an additional 3,312,500 common shares of Torch River upon exercise of certain convertible securities, including the Warrants (the "Convertible Securities"). In the event that the Convertible Securities are fully exercised, the holdings of Pinetree represents a total of 9,937,500 common shares of Torch River, or approximately 24.0% of all issued and outstanding common shares as at January 27, 2012, calculated on a partially diluted basis assuming the exercise of the Convertible Securities only.

This transaction was made for investment purposes and Pinetree could increase or decrease its investment in Torch River depending on market conditions or any other relevant factor.

About Pinetree

Pinetree Capital Ltd. ("Pinetree") was incorporated under the laws of the Province of Ontario and its shares are publicly-traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") under the symbol "PNP". Pinetree is a diversified investment and venture capital firm focused on the small cap market. Pinetree's investments are primarily in the resources sector: Precious Metals, Base Metals, Oil and Gas, Potash, Lithium and Rare Earths, Uranium and Coal. Pinetree's investment approach is to develop a macro view of a sector, build a position consistent with the view by identifying micro-cap opportunities within that sector, and devise an exit strategy designed to maximize our relative return in light of changing fundamentals and opportunities. Pinetree is recognized as a value-added partner in the resource industry.