A mining operation on Tasmania's west coast will soon breathe again after ceasing production, with work set to start on extracting gold, silver, lead and zinc from tailings.
Higher prices for the metals means Hellyer Gold Mines will be able to reprocess previously discarded materials, with up to $1.5 billion in gold, silver, lead and zinc to be recovered from the tailings dams.
Previous owner Bass Metals stopped feeding new ore into its Hellyer processing plant in 2012 when it began winding up activity.
Production was now expected to start by October, which would create up to 50 ongoing jobs.
Hellyer Gold Mines promised to recruit as many Tasmanians as possible for its workforce.
NQ Minerals executive officer Roger Jackson said the mine had nine years of production ahead.
"We will be producing about $1 billion of revenue over the next nine years [and] much of that is going to stay in Tasmania, with 55 people at least employed here full-time," he said.
Waratah-Wynyard Mayor Robby Walsh said the region would benefit greatly from the mine, with additional indirect jobs.
"There will be an enormous amount of spin-off from this [including] contractors [and] the labour workforce," he said.
Minister for Resources Guy Barnett said the Government was committed to growing Tasmania's mining industry.
"The Government has set a target to double new mining ventures over five years, and provided $2 million in this year's state budget for a new Exploration Drilling Grant Initiative to develop new mining opportunities," he said.
The Hellyer Gold Mines announcement followed two other recent mining projects on the west and north-west coasts.
The Rogetta mine was recently granted approvals for a new $100 million iron ore mine which will create more than 200 jobs during construction and up to 100 permanent positions once operational.
The Avebury mine aimed be back in production from January 2019, creating more than 200 jobs in mining, processing and administration.
