I can't see Tyhee struggling to fund a mine. Banks can only make money by lending money and they will be awash with reserves once the bail out process is complete. Once the gold price picks up then gold miners will be one of the few sectors that are not impaired by the decline in consumer demand. Banks like lending against quantifiable hard assets which is why they like property. Gold in the ground in quantifiable, they can crunch the numbers and make a judgement.

Likewise private investors are going to go to the assets that are not "impaired" to quote Jim Rogers. People are going to be queuing up to invest in gold mines in a year to two. The only ones that will struggle, once thing settle down, are those with moose pasture and high hopes... and eventually even they will get their money.