** Shares of Centaurus Metals rise as much as 7.5% to A$0.43, their biggest intraday pct gain since mid October ** Mineral explorer says its Jambreiro iron ore project has been awarded priority status by the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

** Says priority status supports co's plan to re-evaluate the development of project

** More than 228,000 shares change hands vs 30-day avg volume of around 182,000 shares

** Including session's moves, stock trims YTD losses to 22.4%

(Reporting by Nikita Maria Jino in Bengaluru) ((Nikita.Jino@thomsonreuters.com;))