With this approval, the Šturec mine will commence operations after a break of two decades.

The company plans to commence mining immediately and batch process the ore at a processing plant in the region.

An independent local mining contractor selected through a procurement process will carry out the mining operations.

The mining program will be managed by Ing Peter Corej PhD, a Slovak Mining Engineer, who led the development of the Trial Underground application, Ortac said.

Ortac CEO Vassilios Carellas said: "After a thorough engagement process with stakeholders and regulatory agencies, the confirmation by the Central Mining Bureau of the Regional Mining Bureau’s decision, to allow underground mining is an important step in the development of Šturec."

Carellas added, "Following this announcement, we anticipate and expect to receive further requests for clarification with respect to this decision.

"We welcome such requests as they are essential ingredients in designing projects which are successful for all stakeholders."

The Šturec Deposit is located close to the town of Kremnica and Banská Bystrica, and is said to have ore reserve of 1.32 million ounces of gold equivalent, with more than 1Moz in the measured and indicated categories.