Linc, which put Teresa up for sale in August, is now about to reach a binding agreement with an interested party. In its latest quarterly report Linc said it had received a strong level of interest from a number of potential buyers.

In a response to an ASX “speeding ticket” Linc said today: “The company advises that, with regard to the sale of its coal tenements, although it is pursuing a number of divestment opportunities it has, as yet, not entered into any binding arrangements with any party.”

The company is also is on track with the preparation of an environmental impact statement for the Teresa longwall mine, which is planned to deliver 8 million tonnes per annum of PCI coal over a 28-year mine life.

Mining would be by retreat longwall extraction, where a dual set of roadways are driven out from the main entries down each side of the longwall panel to block out a portion of the reserve.

While the project is still in its early stages of preparation for approvals, Linc said the EIS would be available for public comment at the end of next year.

The EIS will assess the potential impacts of the Teresa tenement and also develop appropriate management strategies.

Linc said it would make a concerted effort to build a relationship with landowners surrounding the project during the assessment of the EIS.

“Linc Energy understands the importance of community input and feedback and aims to develop and maintain good relationships with landowners, local communities and other stakeholders,” the company said.

Linc is encouraging its stakeholders to participate in the EIS process to help the company determine the most viable solution for the delivery of the project.

Linc said the mine, which would be located approximately 17km north of Emerald, could generate up to 500 construction jobs and 380 ongoing operational jobs.

While construction on the proposed mine is tipped for 2013 it would probably be not be Linc developing the mine.