Hillgrove Resources Ltd. and Havilah Resources have entered a binding farm-in agreement to advance the Mutooroo copper project in South Australia’s Curnamona Province.
The agreement gives Hillgrove the right to earn an 80 per cent interest in the project upon making a final investment decision (FID).
In return, Hillgrove will fully fund a phased pre-feasibility study (PFS) out of its operational cashflow to assess processing Mutooroo’s sulphide ore to its existing Kanmantoo processing facility.
The partnership leverages Kanmantoo’s established infrastructure, which sits just 200 metres from the Transcontinental railway line.
Mutooroo is positioned 16 kilometres south of the same line, offering a direct logistics pathway that eliminates greenfield development risks, lowers capital intensity, and drastically reduces project execution hurdles.
Mutooroo hosts a JORC Sulphide mineral resource estimate of 192,000 tonnes of copper. Hillgrove believes the integration has the potential to lift its total annual copper production beyond 20,000 tonnes.
Under the farm-in terms, Hillgrove will provide an upfront consideration of AU$5 million in shares and attaching unlisted options. It will then invest up to AU$10 million over a 24-month earn-in period, including a 5,000-metre resource definition drilling program.
Phase 1 will allocate AU$2 million to rail logistics and metallurgical testing, with Phase 2 contingent on those initial results.
Upon reaching FID, Hillgrove can secure its 80 per cent stake by paying a Stage 2 consideration of AU$35 million, structured as a mix of cash, 30 to 70 per cent, and ordinary shares.
Hillgrove CEO Bob Fulker said: “This transaction provides Hillgrove shareholders with a lower risk, capital efficient growth option at a time when new copper discoveries are scarce, and development costs globally continue to rise.”
Havilah Technical Director Chris Giles added that the deal accelerates Mutooroo toward production for minimal capital outlay, while Havilah retains significant upside through its Hillgrove equity, a 20 per cent project interest, and potential cobalt and sulphur by-products.
