The Waroonga site is located 370 km North of Kalgoorlie and 30 km West of Leinster, where the mine’s predominantly fly-in-fly-out workforce is based. There has been sporadic mining and exploration activity at Waroonga for more than 100 years. The main periods of mining activity were:

– 1897-1911 Waroonga Gold Mines – 1935-1948 East Murchison United Gold Mines

– 1986-1990 WMC Ltd Emu AG open pit

The current phase of operation began with the Waroonga open pit cutback of the Emu AG pit, by WMC in 2001. Gold Fields completed the cutback in early-2003, following acquisition of the Agnew and St Ives Gold Operations from WMC in December 2001. Underground mining at Waroonga resumed with portal establishment in early-2002 and initial decline development to access the Kim Lode, under the northern end of the pit.