Sundance Resources chairman George Jones will throw his efforts into saving the troubled Oakajee port development in Western Australia now that the iron ore explorer is set to be taken over by China’s Hanlong.

Mr Jones, a well known Perth mining identity, shot to international prominence last year when he emerged from retirement to resume his role with Sundance after its entire board was killed in a plane crash in West Africa.

With Sundance set to be swallowed up by the aggressively acquisitive Hanlong by May, if the target’s shareholders vote in favour of the deal in April, Mr Jones said he expected to continue to play a key role in WA’s mining sector.

This included his chairmanship of Gindalbie Metals, which will need Oakajee in about five years when production at its flagship Karara project in the Mid West region increases to 16 million tonnes per annum.

“I will do the best I can to get that (Oakajee) up,” Mr Jones told AAP on Tuesday.

“I want to see this project under construction.”

Gindalbie has also flagged the possibility of acquiring a small equity stake in the beleaguered $5.9 billion port development.

Oakajee is in doubt because would-be customer Sinosteel has mothballed a $2 billion iron ore project while port developer Murchison Metals has conceded it does not have enough funds.

WA Premier Colin Barnett is actively seeking Chinese involvement in Oakajee, which is already a joint venture with Japan’s Mitsubishi.

Mr Barnett recently said that Murchison would no longer have an exclusive right to develop the port north of Geraldton if it did not proffer a solution to the funding shortfall by December 31.

With the clock ticking for Murchison, Mr Jones – who has previously shown great tenacity in difficult circumstances – could be just the shot in the arm the Oakajee project needs.