NovaGold Resources Inc. (TSX: NG)(AMEX: NG) today announced that drilling on the Donlin Creek project continues to demonstrate excellent results, further confirming Donlin Creek's world-class potential. To date Barrick Gold Corporation (TSX: ABX)(NYSE: ABX), manager of the Donlin Creek project, has provided drilling results for only the first 74 of 171 completed core holes drilled on the property since February 2006. NovaGold hopes to receive results from the remaining holes as quickly as possible, so that shareholders and the market can determine Donlin Creek's true value. The majority of holes are infill drilling, for the purpose of converting Inferred Resources to Measured and Indicated Resources.

Highlights

- Initial highlights from the infill drilling include(1)(2):

- DC06-1114 with 3 mineralized intervals totaling 117 meters grading 4.10 g/t gold

- DC06-1115 with 7 mineralized intervals totaling 104 meters grading 5.01 g/t gold

- DC06-1144 with 10 mineralized intervals totaling 194 meters grading 3.64 g/t gold

- DC06-1194 with 7 mineralized intervals totaling 111 meters grading 3.62 g/t gold

- DC06-1243 with 7 mineralized intervals totaling 136 meters grading 3.95 g/t gold

- DC06-1245 with 8 mineralized intervals totaling 168 meters grading 3.55 g/t gold

- DC06-1259 with 6 mineralized intervals totaling 87 meters grading 4.58 g/t gold

(1) Composites constructed from assays at a 1.0 g/t gold cut-off grade and a maximum of 4 meters of internal dilution.

(2) True widths have not been determined from the above intercepts, but are believed to be representative of actual drill thicknesses.

- Drilling outside the current resource pit has intercepted new mineralization, extending the Acma zone to the east. Drill hole DC06-1144, which starts within the edge of the resource pit, cut 194 meters grading 3.64 g/t gold, including six intervals beyond the current resource pit model totaling 115 meters grading 3.62 g/t gold and bottoming in mineralization grading 8.2 g/t gold.

- The Donlin Creek Joint Venture (NovaGold 70% and Barrick 30%) approved an 80,000 meter (256,000 feet) drill program for 2006, including infill drilling targeting conversion of Inferred Resources to Measured and Indicated Resources, exploration expansion drilling, geotechnical drilling and carbonate resource drilling. Through mid-September just over 56,500 meters (185,300 feet) of drilling has been completed. Barrick reports that as of September 10th approximately 11,000 meters of completed infill core drilling and 1,000 meters of geotechnical drilling have yet to be logged or sampled.

Donlin Creek 2006 Initial Drill Results

Assay results recently provided by Barrick for 73 of 171 completed drill holes show excellent results. Over 53,000 meters (173,800 feet) of infill drilling are targeted for the conversion of Inferred Resources to Measured and Indicated Resources under the current 2006 budget. Placer Dome's 2005 conversion program converted more than 80% of targeted Inferred Resources to Measured & Indicated Resources.

Click this link to view all drill results made available to NovaGold to date: http://www.novagold.net/i/pdf/AppendixDonlinDrillResults.pdf

Though Barrick has completed very limited drilling outside the current resource pit, important new mineralization has been encountered that extends the Acma zone to the east, which hosts roughly half of the overall Donlin resource. Drill hole DC06-1144, which starts within the resource pit model in the East Acma area, intersected 194 meters grading 3.64 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold including six intervals beyond the resource pit totaling 115 meters grading 3.62 g/t gold. The latter zone outside of the resource pit represents a significant potential expansion of the current resource. The hole ended in high-grade mineralization grading 8.2 g/t gold. NovaGold believes this intercept at East Acma may represent an important gold-controlling structural/intrusive intersection. The Acma deposit occurs at a similar structural/intrusive intersection. NovaGold is not aware of any plan by Barrick to follow up on the potentially material impact of this hole.

The 2006 drill program and sampling protocol are managed by Barrick. All drill samples were analyzed by fire assay at ALS Chemex Labs in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. Assay quality control and quality assurance standards were overseen by Barrick. Stan Dodd, P.Geo. and Senior Project Geologist for NovaGold, and Kevin Francis, P.Geo. and Resource Manager for NovaGold, are Qualified Persons as defined by National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") and have reviewed the results of the 2006 drill program disclosed by NovaGold and confirmed that all procedures, protocols and methodologies used in the drill program conform to industry standards.

Donlin Creek Resource Estimate

NovaGold recently reported a re-tabulated resource estimate for the Donlin Creek project (see August 24, August 31 and September 25, 2006 news releases for details) based on drilling completed through 2005 by NovaGold and Placer Dome U.S. Inc. ("Placer Dome"), and using a 0.76 g/t gold cut-off grade constrained within a US$500/oz gold conceptual pit model.

Donlin Creek Mineral Resources @ 0.76 g/t Au Cut-off

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Resource                                 Tonnes     Grade    Contained
Category                                   (M t)   Au (g/t)   Au (M oz)
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Measured Mineral Resource                    20       2.56         1.6
Indicated Mineral Resource                  196       2.39        15.0
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Measured + Indicated Mineral Resources      215       2.40        16.6
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Inferred Mineral Resource(1)                227       2.34        17.1
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(1) Due to the uncertainty that may be attached to Inferred Mineral
Resources, it cannot be assumed that all or any part of an Inferred
Mineral Resource will be upgraded to an Indicated or Measured Mineral
Resource as a result of continued exploration. See "Cautionary Note
Regarding Resource Estimates". Confidence in the estimate is
insufficient to allow meaningful application of the technical and
economic parameters to enable an evaluation of economic viability of
the Inferred Mineral Resources worthy of public disclosure, except in
the case of the Preliminary Economic Assessment. Inferred Mineral
Resources are excluded from estimates forming the basis of a
feasibility study. It should be noted that Mineral Resources that are
not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. This
Preliminary Economic Assessment is preliminary in nature, and there is
no certainty that the conclusions reached in this study will be
realized.

The 0.76 g/t gold cut-off grade is based on an assumed 60,000 tonnes-per-day mill processing rate and a gold price of US$500/oz. The estimate is based on a 3-D geologic and mineralization model that integrates 222,000 meters (728,000 feet) of drilling completed by Placer Dome and NovaGold through the end of 2005. The resource update did not include any of the new information from the 80,000-meter drill program currently underway on the project and reported in this press release.

The drill programs and sampling protocol used in the estimate were managed by Placer Dome. All drill samples were analyzed by fire assay at ALS Chemex Labs in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. Assay quality control and quality assurance standards were overseen by Placer Dome. Kevin Francis, NovaGold's Qualified Person, has validated the resource estimate and re-tabulation and confirmed that all procedures, protocols and methodology used in the estimate conform to industry standards. An updated NI 43-101 compliant technical report for the resource estimate was filed on SEDAR on September 25, 2006 as part of a Preliminary Economic Assessment completed by SRK Consulting (US), Inc.

Donlin Creek Independent Preliminary Economic Assessment Completed

To provide meaningful and up-to-date information on the Donlin Creek project, NovaGold engaged SRK Consulting to complete an independent Preliminary Economic Assessment that provides current estimates of capital and operating costs for an open-pit mine at Donlin Creek at a production rate of 60,000 tonnes per day. As currently envisioned, Donlin Creek would be one of only a handful of gold mines worldwide that produce over 1 million ounces of gold per year, making it a true world-class asset.

The SRK study shows that Donlin Creek has the potential to produce 1.885 million ounces of gold per year over the first 7 years of the mine at an average cash cost of US$223/oz, and produce an average of 1.4 million ounces of gold per year over the 22-year life of the project. The study further showed that the project will generate an average annual after-tax cash flow of approximately US$482 million for the first 7 years using a long-term gold price of US$500/oz, resulting in rapid payback of all mine capital in less than 5 years. A summary of the study was reported in NovaGold's press release on September 25, 2006. The study, entitled "Preliminary Assessment - Donlin Creek Gold Project" was completed under the direction of Gordon Doerksen, P.E., an independent Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, and was filed on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) on September 25th. The study contains a summary description of the geology, mineral occurrences, mineralization, rock types and geological controls of the deposit.

The Donlin Creek Project

NovaGold owns a 70% interest in the Donlin Creek deposit in a joint venture with Barrick (30%). The deposit, located in southwestern Alaska, is one of the largest undeveloped gold resources in the world. Under the terms of a back-in arrangement, Barrick has an option to earn an additional 40% interest (bringing its total to a 70% interest) in the joint venture by expending a minimum of US$32 million on the property, completing a bankable feasibility study and making a board decision by November 2007 to construct a mine with an anticipated production rate of not less than 600,000 ounces of gold or gold equivalent per year for the first five years of production. A bankable feasibility study is a comprehensive analysis and assessment of a project's economics that would be used by NovaGold to obtain project financing.

NovaGold believes it will not be possible for Barrick to meet the terms and conditions of the Agreement to obtain an additional 40% interest in the Donlin Creek project. NovaGold has filed a lawsuit against Barrick in United States District Court for the District of Alaska seeking, among other remedies, a declaratory judgment to clarify the requirements Barrick must satisfy to earn an additional 40% interest in Donlin Creek, and an order to the effect that it is impossible for Barrick to satisfy these requirements, in which case NovaGold expects to be appointed as manager of the project in place of Barrick.

Galore Creek Resources and Upcoming Drill Results

In the discussion of valuation metrics in NovaGold's September 25, 2006 news release, it was noted that the Barrick take-over offer excludes any value for NovaGold's 8.5 billion pounds of Measured and Indicated copper resource or any value for the additional Inferred Resource of 3.4 billion pounds of copper and 4.3 million ounces of gold located at NovaGold's Galore Creek project. The resource estimates at Galore Creek were recently updated based on 63,000 meters of drilling completed on the project prior to this season's drilling.

Galore Creek Mineral Resources @ 0.25% CuEq Au Cut-off

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Resource              Tonnes     Grade   Contained   Grade   Contained
Category                (M t)  Au (g/t)  Au (M ozs)  Cu (%)  Cu (B lbs)
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Measured Resource      263.6      0.35         3.0    0.62         3.6
Indicated Resource     485.3      0.28         4.4    0.46         4.9
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Measured + Indicated
 Resources             748.9      0.30         7.4    0.52         8.5
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Inferred Resource
 (1)(2)                464.9      0.33         4.3    0.36         3.4
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(1) Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have
demonstrated economic viability. Inferred Resources are in addition to
Measured and Indicated Resources. Inferred Resources have a great
amount of uncertainty as to their existence and whether they can be
mined legally or economically. It cannot be assumed that all or any
part of the Inferred Resources will ever be upgraded to a higher
category. See "Cautionary Note Regarding Resource Estimates".

(2) Includes NovaGold's 80% ownership of Copper Canyon, at a 0.35 CuEq
cut-off grade. Copper-equivalent calculations use metals prices of
US$450/oz for gold, US$7/oz for silver and US$1.25/lb for copper.
Copper-equivalent calculations (CuEq%) reflect gross metal content
that has been adjusted for metallurgical recoveries based on the
metallurgical domain testwork completed by Hatch Ltd. Copper recovery
is expressed as a formula unique to each metallurgical domain
necessary to derive copper concentration grades of 28%, or 26% for the
Southwest Zone. Gold and silver recoveries of each metallurgical
domain are expressed as a proportion of copper recovery. A technical
report for Copper Canyon entitled "Geology and Resource Potential of
the Copper Canyon Property" dated February 9, 2005 was filed on SEDAR
in February 2005.

The resource estimate and technical report for the project, entitled "Updated 2005 Galore Creek Mineral Resources, Northwestern British Columbia", was filed on SEDAR on September 12, 2006 and was completed under the oversight of Mike Lechner, RPG, of Resource Modeling Inc., who is an independent Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101.

NovaGold is nearing completion of its 2006 expansion drilling program at Galore Creek. Additional results from this 35,000 meter program are expected over the coming weeks. Drilling to date has shown significant potential to expand the open pit resource, and an updated resource estimate based on this season's drilling will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2006, along with the Galore Creek Feasibility Study.

About NovaGold

NovaGold Resources Inc. owns 70% of the Donlin Creek gold project in Alaska, one of the world's largest gold deposits. The Company is rapidly advancing toward production at its 100%-owned Galore Creek copper-gold project in northwestern British Columbia, and expects to achieve production in mid-2007 at its 100%-owned Nome Operations in Alaska, which includes Rock Creek, Big Hurrah and Nome Gold. Also in Alaska, NovaGold is earning a 51% interest as manager of the high-grade Ambler copper-zinc-silver-gold project in partnership with Rio Tinto. NovaGold is well financed with no long-term debt, and has one of the largest resource bases of any exploration or development-stage precious metals company. NovaGold trades on the TSX and AMEX under the symbol NG. More information is available online at: www.novagold.net or by e-mail at: info@novagold.net.

About Barrick's Unsolicited Take-Over Bid for NovaGold

On August 14, 2006 NovaGold filed its Directors' Circular and its recommendation statement in which the NovaGold Board of Directors recommended that shareholders reject the August 4, 2006 hostile offer from Barrick Gold Corporation (TSX: ABX)(NYSE: ABX). The Circular describes the reasons for the Board's recommendation that shareholders reject the Barrick Offer. Investors and shareholders are strongly advised to read the Directors' Circular and recommendation statement, as well as any amendments and supplements to those documents, because they contain important information. Investors and shareholders may obtain a copy of the Directors' Circular at www.sedar.com or the recommendation statement from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov. Free copies of these documents can also be obtained by directing a request to NovaGold at Suite 2300, 200 Granville Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6C 1S4, telephone (604) 669-6227, Attn: Corporate Secretary. More information is available online at www.novagold.net or by e-mail at info@novagold.net.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, including without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and exploration results, possible increases in reported resources, production timing and cost estimates, future plans, actions, objectives and achievements of NovaGold or Barrick, are forward-looking statements. Resource estimates also are forward-looking statements as they constitute a prediction based on certain estimates and assumptions as to the mineralization that would be encountered if a deposit is developed and mined. Forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from NovaGold's expectations include fluctuations in gold, copper and other commodity prices and currency exchange rates; uncertainties relating to interpretation of drill results and the geology, continuity and grade of mineral deposits; uncertainty of estimates of capital and operating costs, production estimates and estimated economic return; uncertainties relating to availability and timing of permits and the need for cooperation of government agencies and native groups in the exploration and development of properties; uncertainties involved in litigation with Barrick involving the Donlin Creek project; the need to obtain additional financing to develop properties; the possibility of delay in exploration or development programs and uncertainty of meeting anticipated program milestones; uncertainties arising out of Barrick's management of the Donlin Creek property and disagreements with Barrick with respect thereto, and other risks and uncertainties disclosed under the heading "Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in NovaGold's Directors' Circular and under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in NovaGold's Annual Information Form for the year ended November 30, 2005, filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities and NovaGold's annual report on Form 40-F filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

Cautionary Note Regarding Resource Estimates

This press release uses the term "resources" and NovaGold's Directors' Circular uses the terms "measured resources", "indicated resources" and "inferred resources". United States investors are advised that, while such terms are recognized and required by Canadian securities laws, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") does not recognize them. Under United States standards, mineralization may not be classified as a "reserve" unless the determination has been made that the mineralization could be economically and legally produced or extracted at the time the reserve determination is made. United States investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of measured or indicated resources will ever be converted into reserves. Further, inferred resources have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and as to whether they can be mined legally or economically. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of the inferred resources will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Therefore, United States investors are also cautioned not to assume that all or any part of the inferred resources exist, or that they can be mined legally or economically. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Disclosure of "contained ounces" is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations, however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report "resources" as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures. Accordingly, information concerning descriptions of mineralization and resources contained in this release may not be comparable to information made public by United States companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of the SEC.

National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") is a rule developed by the Canadian Securities Administrators, which established standards for all public disclosure an issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. Unless otherwise indicated, all resource estimates contained in this release have been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Classification System. Unless otherwise indicated, resource calculations reflect NovaGold's interest in the Donlin Creek project at 70%.

To view the map attached to this release please click on the following link: http://www.ccnmatthews.com/docs/0926ng.pdf