Last week Riversdale Resources Ltd., filed applications with the provincial and federal governments to move the Grassy Mountain Coal Project to the development stage.

“We filed our application and [Environmental Impact Assessment],” said Cal Clark, Riversdale’s Manager of Sustainable Development in an email. “The EIA should be posted on the provincial and federal websites this week.”

In Aug. 2013, Benga Mining, a Riversdale Resources Ltd. subsidiary, purchased 35,000-acres of coal properties and freehold land assets, including the Grassy Mountain Project, from Devon Energy and Consol Energy for a total of $49.5 million US.

At peak production, the proposed mine would extract 4 million tonnes of coking coal - primarily used to manufacture steel - annually over 25 years.

The project will undergo a joint federal and provincial review process, which is anticipated to take anywhere from 15 to 18 months. Permitting, licensing and construction are expected to take an additional 18-months.

If approved for development, Riversdale wants to have the Grassy Mountain mine deliver its first shipment of product in 2019.