Highlights

  • Sandfire Resources can earn up to 80% of Kalkaroo by completing a bankable DFS and funding up to $205 million.
  • Kalkaroo hosts 1.1 million tonnes of copper, 3.1 million ounces of gold, and 23,200 tonnes of cobalt.
  • A separate $30 million regional exploration alliance covers Havilah's 16,000km² tenement package in SA.
  • HAV shares surged 243.48% over twelve months to close at $0.790, valuing the company at $279.64 million.

What happens when a world-class copper-gold deposit finally finds the right partner? Havilah Resources Ltd(ASX:HAV) answered that question decisively, signing a transformative agreement with Sandfire Resources that hands one of Australia's largest undeveloped open-pit deposits a fully-funded development pathway.

A Watershed Partnership with Sandfire Resources

Havilah executed definitive transaction agreements with premier copper producer Sandfire Resources to develop the Kalkaroo Copper-Gold Project in South Australia's Curnamona Province. The deal combines an immediate earn-in development pathway for Kalkaroo with a $30 million regional exploration strategic alliance across Havilah's 16,000-square-kilometre tenement package.

Under the agreement, Sandfire can earn up to an 80% interest in Kalkaroo by completing a bankable definitive feasibility study and funding subsequent project development milestones totalling up to $205 million. This structure provides Havilah with elite technical and financial backing while preserving substantial equity upside for existing shareholders.

Scale and Endowment of the Kalkaroo Deposit

Situated near Broken Hill, Kalkaroo is one of the largest undeveloped open-pit copper-gold deposits in Australia. The deposit hosts a massive endowment of 1.1 million tonnes of copper, 3.1 million ounces of gold, and 23,200 tonnes of cobalt across granted mining leases with comprehensive environmental approvals already in place.

The deposit features shallow, continuous mineralisation with a high-grade gold-bearing oxide cap underlain by a thick primary copper-gold-cobalt sulphide ore body. In addition, Havilah owns the Mutooroo copper-cobalt-gold project, containing 13.1 million tonnes at 1.53% copper, 0.16% cobalt, and 0.20g/t gold.

Market Outperformance Following Transaction Announcement

In the ASX session on 2 October 2026, Havilah shares surged $0.040 or 5.33% to close at $0.790, trading between $0.750 and $0.790 on volume of 86,056 shares. At this price, Havilah commands a market capitalisation of $279.64 million, reflecting an exceptional 243.48% gain over twelve months as the market rerated the stock following the Sandfire transaction.

Havilah's balance sheet has been dramatically de-risked by Sandfire's multi-million-dollar funding commitments. With regional exploration overheads and Kalkaroo feasibility workflows fully financed, Havilah operates with minimal corporate burn while maintaining massive operational leverage to long-term copper demand growth.

Feasibility Milestones and Regional Discovery Upside

Extensive technical work is underway at Kalkaroo, focused on geotechnical diamond drilling, metallurgical flowsheet optimisation, and updated pit design studies. The partners aim to validate enhanced recoveries of copper, gold, and byproduct cobalt to support the completion of a bankable feasibility study.

The $30 million regional exploration alliance is simultaneously deploying advanced geophysics and deep drilling across untested targets throughout the Curnamona Province, targeting Olympic Dam-style IOCG systems and SedEx-style base metal deposits, delivering recurring multi-commodity discovery potential.

Development Risks and Considerations

Advancing a mega-project like Kalkaroo requires hundreds of millions of dollars in capital expenditure, subject to commercial final investment decisions, power line infrastructure procurement, and water supply agreements in an arid environment. Sandfire retains discretionary rights regarding earn-in continuation, where adverse feasibility findings could impact development timetables.

Project economics remain sensitive to global copper and gold pricing, contractor construction inflation, and long-term metallurgical recovery performance under large-scale concentrator operating conditions.