The Cantung Mine should be back in full production by the end of the week, says the chair of the board of directors for North American Tungsten.

Stephen Leahy said this week with everything at the mine now up and running, it's just a matter of ironing out the kinks.

The company is almost back up to its full complement of 205 full-time employees and 20 or so contract workers, he explained.

North American shut down its Cantung operation last fall amid a slumping price for tungsten, which was being pulled down by lower demand brought on by the worldwide recession.

The re-start of production commenced last week.

Leahy said the future of the Cantung mine is bright, primarily for two reasons:

• the company has already sold 90 per cent of its expected production for the next two years;

• and with increasing demand, there's a move in the market place by companies who want to secure their future supplies for strategic raw materials they require.

"I certainly think the whole situation has changed dramatically,” Leahy said, adding the company used the time during the shutdown to make improvements in efficiencies at the mine site.

North American Tungsten also announced two weeks ago it has almost doubled the remaining mine life to four years with an additional 700,000 tons of probable reserves confirmed through exploration.

The Cantung Mine is located east of Ross River along the Yukon-N.W.T. border just inside the N.W.T., though the only road access to the site is through the Yukon.

Meanwhile, the company continues to move its Mactung project through the environmental screening by YESAB.

A feasibility study completed last year estimates an underground mine life of just over 11 years, with the potential for an additional 17 years with an open pit operation.

Leahy said North American is in discussions with parties who are "very” interested in financing the $400 million required to develop the mine.

The Mactung property is also located along the border but in the Yukon, approximately 160 kilometres north of Cantung.

Leahy was appointed recently to a two-year term as president of the International Tungsten Industry Association based in London, England.