Hemerdon Mine

Overview

Hemerdon, on the edge of Dartmoor near Plympton, sits on one of the largest tungsten deposits in the world — rated by the British Geological Survey as the fourth-largest known. Worked only in short bursts during the 20th century when tungsten was scarce, it was developed as a major open-pit mine from 2015, closed again after just three years when its operator went into administration, and is now, as of 2026, being brought back into production by a new owner.

History

Tungsten was first discovered at Hemerdon in 1867, but the deposit was only worked when foreign supply was disrupted: briefly in 1919-1920, then more substantially between 1934 and 1944 during the build-up to and through the Second World War, after which the mine closed again once normal tungsten imports resumed. The Australian company Wolf Minerals acquired the rights in 2007 and, after a positive 2011 feasibility study, built a roughly £130 million open-pit mine, restarting production in August 2015 — the first tungsten concentrate to leave Hemerdon in 45 years. The mine operated for just over three years before Wolf Minerals (UK) Ltd went into voluntary administration and production stopped on 10 October 2018. Tungsten West plc bought the site in 2019 and has been working since toward a restart, with first trial concentrate produced and full commissioning targeted for 2026-2027.

Geology

The deposit is a large, low-grade but very extensive tungsten-tin skarn/greisen body associated with the Dartmoor granite, worked as an open pit rather than underground.

Workings

Ore is worked from a large open pit and processed on site to produce tungsten and tin concentrate; the scale of the resource is what makes an otherwise low-grade deposit worth mining.

Closure

Wolf Minerals (UK) Ltd's administration in 2018 halted production after just over three years; the site was not abandoned, but mothballed under new ownership pending a restart.

What remains

As of 2026, Tungsten West plc owns the site and is actively restarting operations, having produced first trial concentrate; full commissioning is targeted for early 2027, with over 120 new staff being recruited.

Abandoned workings can be dangerous — unstable ground, uncapped shafts, flooding and bad air are common even where a site looks safe from the surface. This entry describes history and general location only; it is not an access guide.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• The British Geological Survey rates the Hemerdon deposit as the world's fourth-largest known tungsten deposit. ^1,2
• Tungsten was first discovered at Hemerdon in 1867; the deposit was worked only briefly, in 1919-1920 and 1934-1944, before Wolf Minerals restarted production in August 2015. ¹
• Wolf Minerals (UK) Ltd went into voluntary administration and production stopped on 10 October 2018, after just over three years. ^1,3
• Tungsten West plc, which bought the site in 2019, produced first trial concentrate and is targeting full commissioning in early 2027. ²

Images

Sources

1. (secondary) Hemerdon Mine — Wikipedia
2. (secondary) Hemerdon Mine – World's Largest Non-Chinese Tungsten — Tungsten West
3. (secondary) Wolf Minerals — Wikipedia
4. (secondary) Hemerdon Tungsten Mine (Drakelands Mine) — Mindat.org

Record created: 20 August 2026 · Last researched: 20 August 2026