Fast-track bid for Bendigo gold project accepted by EPA

Santana Minerals’ Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project has been accepted for referral through the Fast Track process.

The application was accepted by the Environmental Protection Authority and will now proceed to be considered by an expert panel.

If successful, Santana Minerals would dig in the Bendigo hills on Thompson Gorge Rd east of Queenstown. Four open pits are proposed, the largest 1km wide and 200m deep.

In a statement issued on Facebook, Santana Minerals chief executive Damian Spring said, going well, construction could begin in mid-2026.

“We’ve taken a careful, thorough approach, and we’re proud to see the application progressing smoothly. It reflects the effort and diligence behind every part of this project.”

Santana Minerals said it had conducted more than $8 million of scientific and environmental studies so far amounting to more than 9400 pages of research, testing and data.

• Santana Minerals chief executive Damian Spring.

Advocacy group Sustainable Tarras opposes the mine and said today was “a sad day for our environment, and for our community”.

“Santana is proposing a hugely complex and environmentally destructive mine that will leave a toxic legacy in an outstanding natural landscape,” the group’s statement said.

“This project is a big risk for New Zealand, and there is too much to lose in getting this wrong.”

The group has concerns about long term impacts, risk, liability and damage the project could cause.

Fast-track legislation aims to make it faster and easier for projects with regional or national benefits to be approved. It means companies only need to seek one approval instead of making multiple separate applications.