Royal Mint plant for striking. This first phase of the mint was officially opened on 17 December 1968 by the royal attendance of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip and their son Prince Charles. Originally there were fears that the Royal family would face protests because of the Investiture of Prince Charles as the Prince of Wales; however, such protests failed to materialise. The second phase of construction began in 1973 and included the addition of a means to mint coins from virgin metals completing the full minting process. Upon completion the final cost for the land, buildings and plant came to £8
Royal Mint years after its announcement the now named "Royal Mint Experience" opened to the public at a final cost of £9 million. Included in the visitor centre an interactive museum, a view onto the factory floor, an education centre and a press whereby visitors can strike their own souvenir £1 coin. On display at the centre are more than 80,000 artefacts, including Olympic medals, a pattern coin of Edward VIII, a Janvier reducing machine and a selection of trial plates. In the same month the mint took in 48 tonnes of silver recovered from the shipwreck of the SS Gairsoppa which