There is renewed hope for former Tahmoor Colliery workers, with liquidators announcing the mine has been sold to a consortium comprising Singapore-based Golden Energy and Resources (GEAR) and Australian mining company M Resources.The sale of the mine south west of Sydney remains subject to state and federal government approvals, but the Mining and Energy Union (MEU) says it is the clearest sign yet that mining operations and hundreds of local jobs could soon return.In March, 238 permanent workers lost their jobs after liquidators moved to make the workforce redundant.It came after the loss of more than 250 contractor jobs in November last year.The mine had been placed into liquidation by the NSW Supreme Court after accumulating more than $430 million in claims, including about $250 million in related-party debt linked to former owner Sanjeev Gupta's GFG Alliance.More than 500 workers have faced uncertainty since the mine was placed in liquidation in March. (ABC Illawarrra: Brooke Chandler)At the time, long-serving employees described leaving the mine for the final time as devastating, with some forced to seek work hundreds of kilometres from home.'Brilliant' newsMEU South Western District secretary Andy Davey said the greatest impact would be felt by workers who had spent months travelling or living away from home in Mudgee, Newcastle and Queensland to maintain employment after the collapse of Tahmoor."With the spread of 400 people that'll be coming back to the area, back to their families, back to their beds every night, it'll be a massive shot in the arm for the local economy," he said.He said the sale was "absolutely brilliant" news for workers, creditors and the broader community."Tahmoor is a great asset. There's nine years, 10 years on the current lease," he said.Andy Davey says the sale could bring hundreds of former Tahmoor miners back to local jobs. (ABC Illawarra: Justin Huntsdale)Mr Davey said there had been significant interest in the mine during the sale process, with as many as 20 parties expressing interest.He said the union had been concerned about the prospect of an inexperienced overseas owner acquiring the operation but was confident the successful consortium had the experience and financial backing needed to restart the mine."They run coal mines, they're a big business, they've got the money behind them," he said.GEAR is the majority owner of Stanmore Resources Ltd and GM3, and is involved in the production of gold in Australia through its 50 per cent interest in Ravenswood Gold.M Resources is an Australian mining investment and coal marketing company specialising in metallurgical coal used in steelmaking. It operates globally and is wholly owned by Brisbane-based mining executive Matt Latimore.The venture is not the first time Mr Latimore has partnered with GEAR, which is majority owned by the wealthy Indonesian Widjaja family. Through its GM3 joint venture, the consortium took over the Appin and Dendrobium coal mines in the nearby Illawarra region in 2024.The consortium was also recently named among the final bidders for the Whyalla Steelworks sale process.According to the liquidators, the successful bidder intends to re-engage with former employees and prioritise rehiring suitably qualified members of the previous workforce as part of any restart plan.Mr Davey said M Resources and its GM3 consortium team had reached out to the MEU about their interest in the mine and what they were prepared to offer workers."Under the terms and conditions of the enterprise agreement, obviously, it's still in place; they'll have to follow it," Mr Davey said."They'll bring our members back and move forward and start getting some coal out of there."He also said he understood the contract of the mine's major onsite contractor, R-Star, would be continued.Liquidator Shaun Fraser said the sale was also expected to deliver a full recovery for secured creditors, employee entitlements and the NSW government, while unsecured creditors were expected to receive a partial return."The transaction is clearly the best possible outcome for creditors, current and former employees and the local Tahmoor community more broadly," he said in a statement.Independent Wollondilly MP Judy Hannan said she was pleased to see an established mining operator with Australian involvement taking over the mine."I'm very excited for the people that work there and it appears like it's a binding agreement and hopefully we'll get everybody back to work as quickly as possible," she said.The Tahmoor mine has been mothballed for more than 18 months. (ABC Illawarra: Brooke Chandler)Possible restart in monthsAttention is turning to how quickly the mine can resume production.Mr Davey said restarting an underground coal mine was far more complex than simply reopening the gates after a lengthy shutdown.But he said the process could move relatively quickly."We're probably still looking at 12 to 16 weeks minimum," he said."They're going to have to start employing people very shortly."A NSW government spokesman said the move was a welcome development."The NSW government will work with the parties to ensure appropriate authorisations are in place to support mining operations to restart safely and as quickly as possible," the spokesman said."As part of the liquidation process, the government took concrete action to protect the interests of taxpayers."M Resources and GEAR have been contacted for comment.Email address