hey styles,
with regard to native title, this comment... "but I also know they are a minor issue in the scheme of things"... is 100% wrong.
They do usually take a while to achieve... but the real danger is where they can't come to terms at all.
I know of one company that was grid locked for 10-12 years in a native titles dispute... they had drilled a few holes then got stopped as the land owners battled the drilling... the asset lay idle for a decade while millions were spent in legal costs before it was finally allowed through the courts.
that is my general comment on native titles approvals.
they can be a very very big deal.
bringing it back to TMT...
given that other companies in the area have ticked these boxes, it shows a willingness of the people of the area to do 'business'.
this is a positive sign.
TMT will have to go through it's own native titles process of course, but i'd expect it to be 'relatively' straight forward.
i wouldn't expect it to take as long as a virgin approval, so to speak.