GOLD bars are once again being poured at the Ballarat Gold Mine, in what the mining company hopes will be the start of a resurgence in Ballarat’s mining industry.

Since taking over the mine in May last year, Castlemaine Goldfields Limited has transformed mining at the site from what seemed a fruitless task to a profitable venture.

The pouring of yesterday’s first bar of gold itself was worth about $430,000, but it is expected that at current gold price, almost $90 million in gold will now be extracted from below Ballarat each year.

Between 5000 and 8000 ounces of gold is expected to be produced in the remainder of this year, with that figure expected to reach about 50,000 ounces next year.

That equates to about 200 gold bars or one-and-a-half tonnes of gold each year, a profit of $20 million per year.

Managing director and chief executive officer of Castlemaine Goldfields Matthew Gill said it was a monumental day for mining in Ballarat.

He predicted a steady stream of gold for at least the next three years, but was uncertain about what laid beyond that.

“We’ve identified the next two or three years (for having plenty of gold) and have planned for five years and beyond that who knows?” he said.

“With the history of the goldfields it could run for a long time. It’s a great milestone for the company and its employees to get us this far.”

The gold that was poured yesterday was mostly gathered from drilling directly below Sovereign Hill, hundreds of metres under ground.

However the future of the project lies further north, underneath the Ballarat Skate Park and beyond.

With about eight grams of gold produced per tonne of rock extracted, Mr Gill said it meant high grade rock and a healthy profit margin.