• Fast-Track Approvals Bill passed into legislation in New Zealand
• Bathurst's Buller Plateaux Continuation Project and Rotowaro Continuation Project accepted as fast-track projects
• Projects will secure existing operations and provide access to additional mining areas

Bathurst Resources Limited (ASX:BRL) has announced that the Fast-Track Approvals Bill has passed its third reading and into legislation in the New Zealand Parliament. The bill will allow projects that gain fast-track listing to be processed in shorter statutory timeframes than under the existing planning regime, and projects can apply for multiple approvals at the same time in one streamlined application. Bathurst, in conjunction with its 65% owned JV company BT Mining Limited, has two projects of significant regional or national benefit that have been accepted as fast-track projects: the Buller Plateaux Continuation Project and the Rotowaro Continuation Project. The Buller Plateaux Continuation Project plans to mine coking coal for export from the Buller Plateaux over a 25-year timeframe, to extend the life of the Stockton mine. The Rotowaro Mine Continuation Project will allow the Rotowaro mine to continue working until at least 2037. Both projects will secure the existing operations and provide access to additional mining areas as coal resources at current sites are depleted.

The Fast-Track Approvals Bill will allow Bathurst's Buller Plateaux Continuation Project and Rotowaro Continuation Project to be processed in shorter statutory timeframes, supporting the government's aim to double the value of mineral exports to $2 billion by 2035.