Kalgoorlie's massive Superpit gold mine has been the lifeblood of the historic mining town, but locals are worried their streets will be dug up once the mine runs out of gold.
Global gold mining giant Newmont Mining is pushing ahead with new exploration sites to extend the life of its Kalgoorlie Superpit operations on the edge of town.
The company this week deflected speculation it is planning to explore for gold beneath Kalgoorlie's historic Hannan Street in the face of community angst.
Newmont's joint venture Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines Superpit is estimated to have another seven years of mine life, but the company insists its focus is to the east of the gold rush town.
"KCGM's drilling will be out in the central corridor to the east side of town," Newmont Asia Pacific regional senior Vice President Tom Palmer told reporters at the Diggers and Dealers conference this week.
"This month we're starting development of the Hidden Secret deposit which is an extension of the amount Charlotte underground mine - that'll extend the mine out to 2018 and we hope that provides a platform to do some more exploration to open up that eastern area."
He said the company was working to extend the life of the open pit which is due to close in 2019.
Northern Star managing director Bill Beament said KCGM was reinterpreting data following a gold discovery underneath Hannan Street.
"They're been forced to do it because the mine finishes in seven years," Mr Beament said.
"When they know there's a finite position, all of a sudden they're given money to test all of these theories and all of a sudden you find stuff."
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