Newmont Waihi Gold external affairs manager Sefton Darby says a resource consent application for a new mine under the town of Waihi is expected to be lodged later this month.

The application is for the Correnso mine; it is under East Waihi with its ore body beginning 130m beneath the surface and descending to 350m depth.

Waihi town.

Modern practice is to start at depth and climb up the ore body, back filling as progress is made.

It means there are no underground voids that can later collapse, as has happened with historical Waihi mine workings.

There will be local hearings on the application later this year and Sefton says it's almost certain it will be appealed requiring an Environment Court hearing.

The hearing could be fast tracked on the commercial list, but it's not worth the bother.

'We have chosen not to,” says Sefton.

'Our view is if you miss out that local public hearing aspect, which is really absolutely essential for local people to have their say on the project, you just create so much grief and so much uncertainty about the people not being able to have their say that it's just not worth it.

'I guess our view is if you exclude people from these processes you create an unnecessary risk, so that's why we go the old school route.”

Access to the Correnso mine will use the Favona Underground Mine portal.

The Favona mine was operational for seven years and was expected to be completed at the end of 2011.

Construction work to develop the $70 million Trio underground mine is underway using the Favona Portal.

Trio is expected to begin production in May and be completed by the end of 2014, coinciding with the completion of mining in the Martha East Layback in the Martha mine's open pit.

Building 13.5km of truck capable Correnso access tunnels is estimated at $200 million at least.

This is in addition to the $190 million a year the company says it costs to operate in Waihi.

'We've been exploring for 20 years and still what we have got is the mines in Waihi,” says Sefton.

'So it's still a pretty high risk proposition; something which people struggle with is even if we have a prospect or even a drill up there along the peninsula the odds are still reasonably long that it will turn into something substantial.”

The current high gold prices are nice to have, but they don't drive the company's longer term plans, says Sefton.

'We've operated through the 1990s when gold was $200 an ounce,” says Sefton.

'Between exploration, consenting, construction; even if you have a great mine it's something that takes seven to 10 years to get something up and running.

'So it's just not a business that works very well if you follow the spot gold price.

'You take the upside when you can, but you have to plan for the downside as well.”

The $55m-$60m exploration project beneath the 260m deep Martha mine pit floor has received consent and is now expected to go to appeal.

Tunnelling will be on the eastern side of the pit and remain within the current licence boundaries.