EXHIBIT 99.8 News Release Homestake Mining Company 650 California Street San Francisco, CA 94108 Stephen A. Orr Vice President Investor Relations 415-983-8169 HOMESTAKE MINING COMPANY COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF PRIME RESOURCES GROUP San Francisco, CA - DECEMBER 3, 1998 - Homestake Mining Company (NYSE: HM) announced today it has completed the acquisition of the 49.4% of Prime Resources Group Inc. (TSE, VSE, AMEX: PRU) it does not already own. As a result of this transaction, Homestake owns 100% of Prime Resources through Homestake's wholly owned subsidiary, Homestake Canada Inc. The company will issue approximately 27.8 million shares valued at $300 million to complete the purchase. Homestake Mining Company is an international gold mining company with operations and exploration activities in the United States, Canada, Australia and Chile. Homestake also has active exploration programs in Latin America and Eastern Europe. Homestake began gold mining operations over 120 years ago, and is the oldest listed company on the New York Stock exchange still in its original business. It has received numerous industry environmental and safety awards for its responsible environmental health and safety stewardships.