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Cerro Verde Porphyry Cu-Mo PDF
Cerro Verde Porphyry Cu-Mo PDF
These deposits represent the northernmost economic hydrothermal system in the 800 km long, upper
Paleocene to early Eocene porphyry Cu-Mo belt of the central Andes of southern Peru and northern
Chile.
The Cerro Verde and Santa Rosa deposits outcrop at altitudes of 2680 to 2750 m on a subplanar
pediment which was eroded into the older "La Caldera" surface that is approximately 200 m higher.
Much of the mineralisation in the three deposits is associated with a "Caldera Complex", a cluster of 61
to 68 Ma granitoid intrusions representing a segment of the Peruvian Coastal batholith. The Santa Rosa
deposit is hosted entirely by Paleogene granitoid units, while Cerro Verde straddles the contact between
these granitoids and the enclosing Mesoproterozoic amphibolite facies metasedimentary and
metaigneous rocks that belong to the Arequipa Massif, which constitutes much of the Andean basement
in southwestern Peru and northernmost Chile.
Each of the deposits is associated with a steep walled stock of hypabyssal quartz- and feldspar-phyric
rock with a surface area of approximately 0.12 sq. km, described as a "dacite monzonite porphyry" or
"quartz-bearing monzonite porphyry" with an overall dacitic composition. They are the youngest
significant intrusives in the district.
There is a strong northwest-southeast elongated fabric in the district, including the elongation of the
Santa Rosa hydrothermal system, the overall alignment of the Cerro Verde, Santa Rosa and Cerro
Negro deposits, breccia zones and vein copper deposits over distance of more than 7 km. This trend
parallels a system of NW trending and steep NE dipping regional faults in the region, possibly a
continuation or extension of the major Incapuquio fault system in the Cuajone-Quellaveco-Toquepala
district some 115 km to the southeast.
Tourmaline cemented breccias are widespread in the Cerro Verde and Cerro Negro deposits only,
although small volumes of tourmaline free "silica breccia" occur at all three centres.
Hydrothermal alteration is distributed over a NW elongated zone covering an area of 5 x 1.5 km in the
Cerro Verde-Santa Rosa district. Potassic and phyllic zones are enveloped by a propylitic halo. The
potassic zone is best developed at depth and is lithology dependent, with two varieties, the first
composed of orthoclase with lesser biotite (around 30%) and magnetite (<5%) in the intrusives; and
biotite-magnetite in the Precambrian metamorphics. A deeper low grade (0.1 to 0.15% Cu) sub-facies of
the potassic zone comprises magnetite-biotite-albite alteration.
The potassic zones are surrounded in the upper parts of the deposits by quartz-sericite-pyrite phyllic
alteration which is the principal host to economic grade mineralisation, with, on average, 5 to 7 percent
sulphide and a chalcopyrite: pyrite ratio of 0.3 to 0.7.
In most parts of these three deposits, the main zone of supergene chalcocite mineralisation is very irregular and discontinuous. At Cerro
Verde there are at least two sulphide enrichment blankets: an older, around 15 m thick horizon, discontinuously preserved; and a younger,
more localised, but thicker zone located within a large body of tourmaline breccia, juxtaposed upon hypogene mineralisation. This lower
blanket is on average 60 to 80 m thick, but increases to 100 m, and locally reaches 150 m in the main tourmaline breccia body. In general,
the supergene sulphides thin to the north and NE. The single preserved blanket at Santa Rosa ranges from 20 to 45 m in thickness, with an
underlying transitional where chalcopyrite is partially replaced by chalcocite, covellite and bornite.
The chalcocite blankets at both Cerro Verde and Santa Rosa are overlain by the brochantite subzone of the oxide zone, in which minor
chrysocolla occurs as veins cutting a brochantite stockwork. Chalcedony, antlerite and malachite are minor constituents.
The oxides are overlain by the upper most part of the profile, the leached zone, which averages 70 m in thickness, but locally persists to
depths of 250 m in the Cerro Verde deposit. Hematite, goethite, and minor jarosite are the most abundant minerals and are best developed
in the breccia zone.
The reserves at Cerro Verde and Santa Rosa comprised (Chan et al., 2003):
supergene ore - 331 Mt @ 0.52% Cu, and
mostly hypogene ore - 464 Mt @ 0.61% Cu.
Remaining proved + probable reserves at Cerro Verde, as at December 31, 2011 (Freeport-McMoRan, 2012) were:
mill ore - 3.752 Gt @ 0.39% Cu, 0.015% Mo, 1.67 g/t Ag (Cu - 86.0%; Mo - 54.4% recovery);
crushed leach ore - 146.0 Mt @ 0.50% Cu (79.8% recovery);
ROM leach ore - 79 Mt @ 0.21% Cu (41.0% recovery).
Remaining proved + probable reserves at Cerro Verde, as at December 31, 2015 (Freeport-McMoRan, 2016) were:
3.856 Gt @ 0.37% Cu, 0.01% Mo.
For detail consult the reference(s) listed below.
The most recent source geological information used to prepare this summary was dated: 2003.
This description is a summary from published sources, the chief of which are listed below.
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