Options include use of the spoil for furthering the harbourside St Leonards to Port Chalmers cycleway, an idea which has been backed by several local people in the area.
The Dunedin City Council had recently given Port Otago resource consent for the up to $500,000 year-long project, but had attached 24 conditions.
In late September Port Otago formally appealed two of the conditions to the Environment Court, but the council, after receiving its copy, responded by late last month and agreed to amend the two conditions.
The two conditions covered Port Otago being responsible for landscaping steep and gorse-ridden areas of Flagstaff Hill, which were not part of the designated earthworks area.Port Otago chief executive Geoff Plunket said instead of moving to mediation, the council had agreed to amend the landscaping conditions.
"We can now start looking for a home for the fill," Mr Plunket said, and the port company was "in talks with several parties". It could be available for the New Zealand Transport Agency-funded cycleway or perhaps for a roading project.
He said having the spoil trucked to a landfill was the "least preferred" and "most expensive" option. Over about a year, Port Otago would cut more benches into the lower sections of Flagstaff Hill to stabilise it, with up to 4500 truck movements required to remove spoil.
Mr Plunket did not yet have a start date, but hoped to start the project as soon as possible once a destination was found for the rock.
