“Springsure Creek is a mine that will be globally cost competitive once it is built,” he said at the explorer’s annual general meeting.

“It is able to surpass the legacies and disadvantages of many old Australian coal operations which are being forced to close and shed staff due to high costs in the face of current short-term coal prices. Springsure Creek will benefit from a re-framing of human, technological and capital productivity. It will set new benchmarks.”

He said Bandanna’s next milestones for this financial year were expected to be securing initial project development funding for the project along with the grant of its mining licence MLA 70486.

The Queensland government recently approved the project’s environmental impact statement. Other loose ends include gaining federal environmental approval and stage one completion of the Wiggins Island Coal Export Terminal.

The explorer has previously flagged starting construction of the project in the September quarter of 2014, with first development coal expected in 2015.

The thermal coal project is initially targeting 5.5 million tonnes per annum of capacity.

First longwall coal is expected in the second half of 2016.

If the expansion to double output goes ahead, first coal from the second longwall is expected in 2020.