The landowner and occupier have until August 1 to comply with the district plan, a letter sent by the council said.
Last week, environmental group Sustainable Tarras claimed Santana Minerals and Matakanui Gold Limited had been in breach of the district plan "for years" by operating an industrial factory to process drill samples and co-ordinate drilling crews at Bendigo.
Dated June 25, the council letter said the commercial activity at Bendigo Loop Rd for Santana Minerals Ltd and Matakanui Gold breached the rules by having more than three people engaged in "a commercial, industrial of manufacturing nature on site".
At least 15 people were engaged in the commercial activity on site, which would require a resource consent as a discretionary activity, the letter said.
The second transgression was the white buildings and structures were the wrong colour according to the district plan which required them to be finished in "browns, greens, grey blue, greys, terracotta, tussock and dark reds, provided that the colour has a reflectivity value (RV) of less than 38%".
Material stored or stockpiled for more than six months and not screening it from public view was the third breach detailed in the letter.
"The core sample stored on site are visible from Bendigo Loop Rd," the letter says.
In each case the council offered two options to conform with the district plan. Either obtain the required resource consent or cease the activity.
Last week, Santana chief executive Damian Spring said Matakanui Gold had developed a plan to fully relocate the exploration base to Ardgour Station for the duration of any subsequent mine.
Earlier this month, Mr Spring said in a statement the company had completed the transaction with the station’s owners Bruce and Linda Jolly.
The total acquisition includes four land records of title covering an estimated 2880ha of land including "all irrigable lands, water rights and infrastructure".
The freehold ownership of Ardgour Station land covers the proposed location of the project’s process plant and most of the infrastructure for development.
The transaction is subject to Overseas Investment Office approval.
