Canada's Eldorado says to resume work at Greek gold mine

ATHENS (Reuters) - Eldorado Gold will resume construction work at a stalled Greek gold mine project after it received approval by Greek authorities, the Canadian miner said on Monday.

After years of confrontation with the Greek government over environmental concerns, Vancouver-based Eldorado halted development in its Skouries project in northern Greece in January.

It laid off most of its 600 workers at the project, saying the government had been delaying necessary permits. Eldorado had also threatened to do the same with its Olympias mine, which is situated nearby.

Eldorado said its Greek unit, Hellas Gold, received approval of an updated technical study for its Skouries project. The decision enabled it to recommence construction activities at the site, the company said.

"We are all very pleased with the receipt of this approval and greatly encouraged by the ongoing interaction between Hellas Gold and the Ministry and its technical services," Chief Executive Officer Paul Wright said in a statement.

"We look forward to working together with the Ministry to advance the Skouries and Olympias projects for the benefit of all stakeholders," he added.

Eldorado was granted a Greek licence to set up a processing plant in Olympias in March, which was instrumental in the development of the mine.

(Reporting by Angeliki Koutantou, editing by Ed Osmond)