** Shares of Southern Palladium SPD.AX rise 15.4% to A$0.225, set for their strongest trading session since mid-February, if gains hold
** The miner receives environmental authorisation from the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources for the development of co's Bengwenyama platinum group metals project
** Says authorisation paves way for the award of the project's mining right
** More than 20 million shares change hands vs 30-day avg volume of around 17.7 million shares
** Stock down 62.5% YTD, including current session's moves
(Reporting by Nikita Maria Jino in Bengaluru)
((Nikita.Jino@thomsonreuters.com;))