A company looking to revive a mine in Devon and start producing rare metal tungsten has unveiled a plan for reopening the site.
Tungsten West Plc is planning to restart production at the Hemerdon mine near by 2026 if it can secure funding by the end of the year.
The company’s economic and development plan, which has been published ahead of a full feasibility study, claims the Plymouth-based mine could produce 20% of the global supply of primary tungsten outside of China once operational.
Tungsten West said on Monday (June 2) it needs to secure financing of US$93m to restart production. The company is currently in discussions with several parties regarding the funding of the project, it added.
Jeff Court, chief executive of Tungsten West, said: "The publication of the plan serves as reflection of our strong intent and focus to restart mining operations and tungsten production at Hemerdon."
Mr Court said the mine would "significantly strengthen" the developed world's supply chain for the "critical metal" tungsten, which is used widely in steel production as well as aerospace, military, oil drilling, electrical instrumentation, medical and other industries.
"This plan offers a clear, staged and manageable approach to bring Hemerdon back into production," he added.
"Further to this, I look forward to the completion of the updated feasibility study, expected in the coming months, which will confirm the attractive economics and strong investment case for the project, bolstering our position in ongoing conversations with a range of funding partners.
"I would like to thank our shareholders, loyal employees, internal and external consultants and all our stakeholders for their continued support."
The announcement comes after an uncertain few months for the project. In March, was reported the mine .
According to Business Live's sister site Plymouth Live, accounts filed by subsidiary company Drakelands Restoration Ltd revealed a “material uncertainty” against it continuing in business unless it had a major cash injection.
For the year ended March 2024, the subsidiary made a loss of £4.578m, and Tungsten West in January revealed a half-year loss of nearly £14m.
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