Four MBIE officials had turned up twice in one week and been "very aggressive", he said. But it's just a tiny fraction of the 500ha permit," Morrison said. "They just keep saying it's too big ... the biggest exploration site ever seen in New Zealand. And if they want me to have a mining permit, well they've had a year to process the application and so far -- nothing." An MBIE spokesman said Morrison's application for a mining permit was being evaluated but there was a backlog of applications.

Source: Otago Daily Times July 12, 2021 02:15 UTC