guess the share price if this was in wa lol

Hillgrove Resources Ltd is four weeks from completing a definitive feasibility study on its $100 million Kanmantoo copper-gold project in South Australia, which the company hopes to have in production by 2009.

Kanmantoo, which is located about 55 kilometres south-east of Adelaide, was first operated in the 1840's before low copper prices and a skills shortage brought the operation to a close.

The skills shortage was spurned by the Victoria gold rush, with miners making their way across the border in search of their fortune.

Kanmantoo experienced a brief renaissance in the early 1970's before low copper prices again forced the mine's closure.

Hillgrove is aiming to have the historical mine back in operation by early 2009, producing about 19,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate and 6,000 ounces of gold on an annual basis.

The company is about four weeks away from completing a definitive feasibility study, with early estimates putting the capital cost of the mine redevelopment at $100 million.

When the Hillgrove board meets to give the green light to the mine's development, the company is fortunate enough to have a number of financing options at its disposal.

At the top of the list is Hillgrove's 25.1 per cent shareholding in coal seam gas explorer Eastern Star Gas Ltd.

"Our best asset is Eastern Star Gas," Hillgrove chairman and former South Australian premier Dean Brown told journalists at Kanmantoo on Monday.

"We see that as an investment ... and we see that as an important feature in raising (money) for this project."

The sale of the company's stake in Eastern Star Gas is likely to cover the bulk of the $100 million-plus required for Kanmantoo's development.

The company is also backed by US-based Sempra Metals, which has a small stake in Hillgrove and has an agreement to take the entire offtake from the Kanmantoo mine.

The state of South Australia has a rich copper mining history and held the title of the world's largest producer of the metal in the 1800's.

The state is home to the world's fourth largest copper deposit at BHP Billiton Ltd's Olympic Dam mine and houses Oxiana Ltd's emerging Prominent Hill copper-gold project.

Once Kanmantoo is restarted, the next cab off the rank for Hillgrove could be the Wheal Ellen lead-zinc project, where recent exploration drilling delivered a suite of promising results.

Ellen Wheal was the focus of historical mining in the 1850's and is located about 15 kilometres south-west of Kanmantoo and seven kilometres north of Terramin Australia's Angas lead-zinc mine.

"The proximity to these mine developments, established infrastructure and Adelaide, underscore the low cost development setting for any potential project in the area," Hillgrove managing director David Archer said.