According to Mining News Pro -The dispute related to the drilling activities that have started outside the requisite approval process set out in a joint venture agreement, Broken Hill said on Tuesday.

The JV parties have been stuck on a suitable timeframe for bankable feasibility study (BFS) work at Thackaringa, with Cobalt Blue taking the decision to elect out of the earning period process of a previous farm-in agreement, which would have required a BFS by mid-2019.

The issue led Cobalt Blue to opt out of the farm-in agreement, and to retain a 70% interest in the JV, rather than working towards full project ownership.