** Shares of Santana Minerals SMI.AX rise 6.3% to A$0.845, posting their biggest intraday pct gain since November 13
** Metals explorer says its application for the development of the Bendigo-Ophir gold project in Central Otago, New Zealand has been formally accepted by Environmental Protection Authority (EPA)
** YTD, stock up 73.2%, including current session's move
(Reporting by Ananya Verma in Bengaluru)
((ananya.verma@thomsonreuters.com;))