The gold mine has now poured one million ounces since opening in 2005.

President and chief executive of Newmarket Gold, which owns Fosterville Gold Mine, Doug Forster said the milestone showed the mine was world class.

“Not that many mines reach a million ounces, so it really is a world class mine,” he said.

“There are super deposits around the world, even in Australia, so to produce a million ounces these days, in a fairly depressed gold cycle where it’s harder for miners to be profitable really is important on a number of aspects.

“It’s hugely important to our team of employees that have achieved this one millionth ounce. 

“The credit goes to the team in Bendigo and at the Fosterville mine. We are pretty fortunate and this is just the start for Fosterville. We think this mine will go for many more years to come.”

Mr Forster said it took seven years for Fosterville to pour its first 500,000 ounces but only another four years to reach the one million ounce mark.

The mine is one of only 10 plants around the world to implement the innovative Biox technology – a bacterial oxidation process that liberates gold from certain types of ore, with reduced air emissions and energy requirements compared to conventional processing.

“A lot of the gold is encapsulated in sulphide and we have to use bacteria to feed on the sulphide and liberate the gold,” Mr Forster said.

“It sounds like a complex process but it has been mastered here. 

“In terms of Biox plants around the world, this is the most efficient recovery facility of this kind that I'm aware of. They do a fantastic job in recovering the gold.”

Minister for Industry, Energy and Resources Lily D’Ambrosio said the future was bright for the Fosterville Gold Mine.

“There are the 400 employees and 400 families seeing the value of their efforts in the last few years to this fantastic milestone,” she said.

“The mine presents so many fantastic benefits for the local community including a $90 million economic benefit for the area (each year).”

City of Greater Bendigo Mayor Rod Fyffe said it was a “mighty achievement” not only for Fosterville but for the workers.

“For the workers and everybody involved (one million ounces) is a terrific achievement,” he said.

“Not only in the number of zeroes in a million but for the fact it has been got out of the ground with a great deal of initiative, creativity and innovation.

“We should be very proud of what has been achieved here, it doesn’t happen every day.”

Mr Fyffe said there was likely to be a lot more gold extracted by the mine over the next decade.

“I look forward to seeing those special occasions to make sure people do celebrate such a significant achievement,” he said.

Fosterville Mine is the biggest gold mine in Victoria.

It is a fact that might surprise a lot of people but on that fits perfectly with central Victoria’s gold mining heritage.

President and chief executive of Newmarket Gold Doug Forster said there is a lot of potential for mining in Victoria.

“Most investors and miners think all gold is produced in Western Australia and a lot of it is,” he said.

“But in Victoria, with the tradition of Bendigo and Ballarat, there is a long mining history.

“Many potential resources lie untapped in this part of the state. We think the potential of this mine is extraordinary.”

Geological estimates suggest there may be as much as 15 to 70 million ounces of undiscovered gold in northern regions of Victoria.

“The possibility of more gold being found in this region is quite exciting,” Minister for Industry, Energy and Resources Lily D’Ambrosio said.

“Gold was the beginnings of Bendigo and Stawell and it’s going to be the future.”