Adelaide Hills Kanmantoo Copper Mine to reopen in 2021
More than 100 mining jobs could return to the Adelaide Hills from next year as Hillgrove Resources moves to recommence underground mining at Kanmantoo.
Adelaide Hills
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More than 100 jobs could return to the Adelaide Hills from next year, as Hillgrove Resources seeks to reopen its copper mine in Kanmantoo.
Hillgrove CEO and managing director Lachlan Wallace said the company still wanted to expand on its underground mining operation after a failed negotiation with AGL.
The energy retailer sought to develop a 250MW pumped-hydro energy storage project at the site but decided to pull out of the deal in February this year.
Mr Wallace said that decision had not hindered Hillgrove’s plan to develop the future prosperity of the mine, which stopped open-cut operations last May.
“Between now and hopefully sometime next year we’re hoping to continue evaluating the underground (mining option), which requires some initial drilling and engineering works to hopefully demonstrate that the underground is viable to attract the appropriate funds and restart the mine,” Mr Wallace said.
“My hope would be that we’ll be in a position to restart next year … that will be our aim, pending funding and drilling.”
Mr Wallace said Hillgrove had a strong relationship with the region, having operated in Kanmantoo for the past 50 years.
“Hillgrove, during its time, would have produced $1 billion in revenues. There’s a lot of money, well over $1 million (a year) of that would have gone back to the local region through wages, local contracts and the wider community,” he said.
“It’s something we would like to see continued … and my estimate would be that we could recreate 100 to 130 jobs if we can recommence the underground (mining).”
Mr Wallace said the company was keen to employ people who used to work at the mine.
“Fifteen per cent of those lived within 5km of the mine, so we’d love to get all of those people back.
“In fact, we have a policy of local hire where possible, as well as local procurement, so we have a list of local businesses we’ll be preferentially sourced from if they can supply the appropriate goods or services.”
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Earlier this week, Mount Barker District Council approved an amendment to the Kanmantoo Copper Mine Development Plan.
The plan was privately funded by Hillgrove, at a cost of $100,000, to explore the potential reuse of 32ha of mining land. Mr Wallace said there was a number of large industrial buildings which could be reused at the mine site, potentially creating job opportunities outside of mining. He said the property’s access to 2.5GL of water and an existing haulage road made it ideal for other industries.
The amendment has been forwarded to the Planning Minister for approval.
