If all goes to plan, construction work on the mine (leucoxene is a form of ilmenite) will start in the first quarter of next year, with first exports out of Bunbury port by the end of next year.

MZI chief executive Trevor Mathews told the Resources Rising Stars conference on the Gold Coast that mining at Keysbrook would be as simple as it gets, a possible indication the project should generate strong profits.

Located in flat-lying country in the outer suburbs of Perth, Keysbrook was once best known as a thoroughbred horse-breeding address, site of the famous stud of the late Robert Holmes a Court.

Mathews did not provide profit estimates, but analysts at stockbroking firm Hartleys have told clients that the company, trading at 3.3c, has a price has a price target of 9c.

He said the government approvals for Keysbrook had been received for an initial 6.5 years, though the mine was expected to have a life of more than eight years.

Mineral sands can be highly profitable if deposited in the most desirable assemblage, with zircon the most valuable and ilmenite the least.

The leucoxene at Keysbrook should attract a premium over conventional ilmenite, but not reach the price heights of zircon.

For MZI, which has passed through a number of difficult years under previous management, the start on work at Keysbrook will continue a revival process that started with a small but profitable mineral sands mine on the Tiwi Islands north of Darwin.

The Lethbridge South mine cost just $5 million to develop as a simple truck and shovel operation, but should generate an estimated $40 million in revenue during its eight months of operation. With $20 million sticking to MZI as profit, it will find its way into early-stage funding of Keysbrook.

Mathews told the conference that a third project, Kilimiraka, was also evolving on the Tiwi Islands. Early-stage environmental work had started with a scoping study expected to start in the middle of next year, followed by a feasibility study in late 2013.