Where are the mining jobs in Victoria?
Victoria does not have the large iron ore and coal belts of Western Australia or Queensland. The jobs we could verify sit in four places:
| Site | Location | What | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fosterville | 20 km east of Bendigo | Gold | More than 800 directly employed (24 May 2025) |
| Costerfield | About 10 km north-east of Heathcote, 50 km east of Bendigo | Gold and antimony, underground | Residential operation, owned by Alkane Resources |
| Stawell | Stawell, Northern Grampians region | Gold, underground | Reopened 2018 under Arete Capital Partners; current status not verified |
| Loy Yang A | Latrobe Valley | Brown coal power station | Scheduled to close in 2035 |
This is a starting list, not a full register of Victorian operations. Operations we could not confirm from a page we could read are left out.
Gold: Fosterville, Costerfield and Stawell
Fosterville
A Victorian Government release dated 24 May 2025 describes Fosterville as the state’s largest gold producer, 20 km east of Bendigo. It says the mine directly employs more than 800 people, expected to increase to more than 1,000. The release says the Planning Minister signed off the Environment Effects Statement for the expansion, and that the project still needed mining and EPA approvals, plus Commonwealth approval under the EPBC Act. The release does not name the operator, so check the operator’s own careers page for current vacancies.
Costerfield
Alkane Resources says it wholly owns Costerfield, about 10 km north-east of Heathcote and roughly 50 km east of Bendigo. It mines gold and antimony underground, with Youle and Shepherd the main sources and ore processed at the Brunswick plant. Alkane reports FY2026 output of 40,103 oz of gold and 1,298 t of antimony. It calls the site a residential operation, so employees live at home and return after each shift, and says it offers graduate, VET, apprentice and entry-level operator roles and encourages local applicants. If you are new to the industry, read mining jobs with no experience.
Stawell
A Victorian Government release dated 28 August 2018 says Arete Capital Partners owns the Stawell Gold Mine, which was returning to production, with underground exploration on the eastern flank of the Magdala basalt dome. It also says 65 new jobs had been added in the previous year. That release is eight years old, and we could not verify the mine’s current operating status or workforce. Check before applying.
Brown coal and mineral sands
Latrobe Valley brown coal
The Victorian Government said on 21 August 2023 that AGL formally notified the market that Loy Yang A will close in 2035. It describes a binding Structured Transition Agreement with a firm 12-year notice period and a transition package for workers beyond AGL’s existing obligations. An earlier statement from 29 September 2022 says the government would help locals “retrain, reskill and find new work opportunities close to home.” We could not verify closure dates for other Latrobe Valley power stations or mines from a page we could read, so we do not give them.
Mineral sands
We could not verify the current status of any Victorian mineral sands mine from a company or government page we could read. For the latest, check the operators directly, such as the Iluka operations page and Astron. We have not confirmed what either currently runs in Victoria.
Who employs, and where to check
We only list employers whose Victorian operations we could confirm from their own words or a government release: Alkane Resources at Costerfield (see its project page), and the operators of Fosterville, Stawell and Loy Yang A, whose names you should take from their own sites. Our company directory holds head offices only, not Victorian sites, so a head office listed there is not a mine site. Apply through each employer’s own careers page. If you want an agency, see mining recruitment agencies. Residential and local roles, like Costerfield’s, are different from rostered work covered in our FIFO guide and the FIFO jobs page.
Who regulates mines in Victoria?
WorkSafe Victoria has a page for mines and refers operators to its Earth Resources Program. WorkSafe also publishes a memorandum of understanding with the Earth Resources Regulation unit. Government department names have changed over the years, and we could not verify the unit’s current department from a page we could read. Confirm the current regulator on the WorkSafe Victoria and Victorian Government websites before you contact either.
On training, WorkSafe says apprentices and trainees must be adequately instructed on how to do a task safely, and that winder drivers and others who use shaft winding systems must be informed, instructed and competently trained. The mine provides the induction, so ask the operator what it requires before you pay for any course.
Licences and tickets in Victoria
- High risk work licence (HRWL). Issued by WorkSafe Victoria for specific classes. You train and pass an assessment with a registered training organisation, then lodge your application within 60 calendar days. WorkSafe lists $77.70 per class to apply and $58.70 to renew, and the licence is valid for five years, with renewal open within 12 months of expiry. See the high risk work licence guide and the crane licence guide.
- Dogging and rigging. Compare providers for dogging and rigging.
- Everything else. Browse the tickets and certificates directory, plan your order with the cert planner, and check pay with the salary calculator or the salaries pages.
Not sure where to start? Read how to get into mining.
Frequently asked questions
Where are the mining jobs in Victoria?
Gold is the main hard rock story. The Victorian Premier's office calls Fosterville, 20 km east of Bendigo, the state's largest gold producer, and Alkane Resources runs the Costerfield gold and antimony mine about 50 km east of Bendigo. The Latrobe Valley is Victoria's brown coal region, where the Loy Yang A power station is scheduled to close in 2035. Stawell in western Victoria was reopened as a gold mine in 2018, but we could not verify its current status.
How many people work at Fosterville?
A Victorian Government release dated 24 May 2025 says the mine directly employs more than 800 people, expected to rise to more than 1,000. That is the government's figure from that date, not a current vacancy count. The release also says the expansion still needed mining and EPA approvals plus Commonwealth approval, so check the operator's own site for the current position.
Is Costerfield a fly-in fly-out mine?
No. Alkane describes Costerfield as a residential operation, where employees live at home and return there after each shift. It says it offers graduate, VET, apprentice and entry-level operator roles and encourages local applicants. Costerfield is about 10 km north-east of Heathcote.
Who regulates mine safety in Victoria?
WorkSafe Victoria covers occupational health and safety, and it has a page and a program for mines called the Earth Resources Program. WorkSafe also has a memorandum of understanding with the Earth Resources Regulation unit. We could not verify the regulator's current department name from a page we could read, so confirm it on the WorkSafe Victoria and Victorian Government resources sites before you contact either.
Do I need a high risk work licence to work at a Victorian mine?
Not for every job. A high risk work licence (HRWL) is class specific, for tasks such as operating cranes, forklifts and boom-type work platforms, and the mine decides what its roles require. WorkSafe Victoria says you first complete training through a registered training organisation and pass the assessment, then lodge your licence application within 60 calendar days. The licence is valid for five years.
How much does a Victorian high risk work licence cost?
WorkSafe Victoria lists an application fee of $77.70 per class and a renewal fee of $58.70, as read on 10 October 2026. That is the regulator's fee only. Training and assessment fees are set by each registered training organisation and are not covered here.
Are there brown coal jobs in the Latrobe Valley, and for how long?
The Victorian Government says AGL formally notified the market that its Loy Yang A power station will close in 2035, under a binding Structured Transition Agreement with a 12-year notice period. The government also pledged a transition package to help workers retrain, reskill and find work close to home. We could not verify closure dates for other Latrobe Valley stations from a page we could read.
Are there mineral sands mining jobs in Victoria?
We could not verify the status of any Victorian mineral sands operation from a company or government page we could read, so we do not list one. Check the operators' own sites, for example Iluka's operations page and Astron's website, before you plan around it.
Sources
Last updated 10 October 2026. Facts on this page come from the sources below.
- Premier of Victoria: Bright future for Fosterville gold mine (24 May 2025, read 10 October 2026)
- Alkane Resources: Costerfield project (read 10 October 2026)
- Premier of Victoria: Stawell mine reopens as minerals sector booms (28 August 2018, read 10 October 2026)
- Premier of Victoria: Agreement secures transition for Loy Yang A (21 August 2023, read 10 October 2026)
- Premier of Victoria: Statement from the Minister for Energy (29 September 2022, read 10 October 2026)
- WorkSafe Victoria: Safe working environment for mines (read 10 October 2026)
- WorkSafe Victoria: Memorandum of understanding with the Earth Resources Regulation unit (read 10 October 2026)
- WorkSafe Victoria: High risk work licence (read 10 October 2026)
Every figure and date on this page comes from the sources listed here, as read on 10 October 2026. Several Victorian Government resources pages and some company sites blocked our automated reading, so we left out anything we could not confirm directly. We do not quote vacancy numbers, pay or hiring status.
Where to next
- High risk work licences Classes, process and validity.
- Crane licence guide Classes from CN to C0, CV and CB.
- How to get into mining Entry paths, tickets and first steps.
- Mining recruitment agencies Agencies that place mining workers.
- FIFO jobs: where to apply Employer careers pages and job boards.
- FIFO jobs from Melbourne Flights, mining regions and employers that hire from Melbourne.
- Mining jobs with no experience Entry roles and how to apply.
- Mining salaries Pay by role, with sources.
- Cert planner Plan which tickets to get first.
Not sure where to start?
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