The Department of Environment and Resource Management received and accepted 11 comments on the draft TOR following its three-month advertising period which finished in December.

Of the 11 comments received, eight were from government agencies and one was on behalf of a landowner.

Bandanna will respond to the submissions within 20 days.

Following this, Bandanna expects the Dingo West project EIS TOR will be finalised by the DERM in accordance with section 46 of the Environmental Protection Act 1994.

The completed EIS will form part of the application for its mining lease over the Dingo West project.

Dingo West is anticipated to produce between 500,000 and 1 million tonnes per annum.

Subject to approvals processes, first production is expected in 2013.

The project is located in, around and to the west of the Dingo township in central Queensland.

Meanwhile, the company has signed two cultural heritage management plans with the indigenous Kairi people for its Springsure Creek coal project and its Arcturus project.

The agreement will enable Bandanna to work with the Kairi people to identify and manage cultural heritage while at the same time ensuring the development of both projects’ progress.

Bandanna Energy managing director Ray Shaw said the agreements were a milestone in progressing with the company’s flagship projects.

“We see this as a significant step in the development of the projects and look forward to working with the Kairi people to further develop the projects in a manner which respects the cultural integrity of the area,” he said.

The Kairi people are the Aboriginal party for the majority of the Springsure Creek, the entire mining licence area for the Springsure Creek project, as well as a significant portion of the Arcturus tenement.

Bandanna is undertaking EIS studies on both its Springsure Creek and Arcturus projects.

Its Springsure Creek thermal coal project is targeting two longwall operations for 11Mtpa, while its Arcturus thermal coal project is targeting 5Mpta of product coal through open cut and underground mining by 2014.