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The Saindak Porphyry Cu (-Ag) Deposits in Chagai, Western Pakistan:

Alteration, Mineralization Characteristics and Genesis

Article  in  Acta Geologica Sinica · December 2014

DOI: 10.1111/1755-6724.12374_45

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 ACTA GEOLOGICA SINICA (English Edition)
Vol. 88 Supp. 2 http://www.geojournals.cn/dzxben/ch/index.aspx http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ags Aug. 2014

Qureshi Javed AKHTER, XUE Chuandong, Abdul GHAFAR and KUN Xiang, 2014. The Saindak Porphyry Cu (-Ag) Deposits in Chagai,
Western Pakistan: Alteration, Mineralization Characteristics and Genesis. Acta Geologica Sinica (English Edition), 88(supp. 2): 593-594.

The Saindak Porphyry Cu (-Ag) Deposits in Chagai, Western Pakistan: Alteration,

Mineralization Characteristics and Genesis

Qureshi Javed AKHTER1,2, XUE Chuandong1*, Abdul GHAFAR and Kun XIANG1

1 Department of Earth Science, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, China, 650093
2 Karakoram International University, Gilgit, Pakistan

The porphyry copper deposits, lies five kilometers to
the East of Fort Saindak, at the extreme western portion of
the province of Baluchistan, Pakistan. The co-ordinates of
the principal deposit area are 29° 15'N and 61o 37'E. .
(Rehan 2004)
This valley cuts through the large Saindak syncline at
about 45 degrees to its 'Northwest striking axis. The valley
appears to be fault controlled with bounding faults on both
sides.(Rehan 2004) This structure localized the quartz
diorite intrusive, hence the disseminated mineralization.
The axis of the syncline passes through the mineralized
intrusive.(Arthurton 1982) Only two formations are found
near zone, the Eocene Saindak and the Oligocene
Amalaf.In the 'Sulphide Valley' south of Saindak Fault,
three porphyry ore bodies namely East, North and South
have been proved in the quartz diorite stocks intruded into
Oligocene sediments. The three ore-bodies carry their
respective zones of hydrothermal alteration mineralization
centered on the respective stocks.
1 Geological Setting
The Saindak copper/silver deposit is situated in the
Chagai calk-alkaline magmatic belt,it belongs to granite-
diorite series, mainly consisting of granodiorite, tonalite
and quartz monzonite. Most of these rocks masses have
intruded into submarine volcanic rocks and fragmental
segments formed at late cretaceous to Oligocene age.
After Oligocene, this region underwent rising and
undulant moments for a long period of time, the existing
hilly landforms formed because of long-term weathering
and erosion. As its lithological color is yellow red, so this
region is also called sulphides valley.TheChagaiarc is
composed largely of Upper Cretaceous to Oligocene
sedimentary rocks, largely clasts of the flysch type.
Volcanic constitute a large proportion of the column in the
* Corresponding author. E-mail: javed.akhter@kiu.edu.pk
northern area. (John 1974).
2 Mineralization
Saindak porphyry is a large Cu-Ag deposit in the
Chagai arc. Three-ore bodies have been identified in the
Saindak area. The quartz diorite,garanodiorite and tonolite
porphyry stocks and surrounding pluton veinlet
disseminated The magmatic rocks within the area mainly
consist of granodiorite batholith and tonaloite porphyry
intruded and formed at Miocene age and secondly of
andisite porphyry vein, diorite porphyry vein and quartz
tourmaline veins of later age.
Four mineralization stages has been recognized
asdisseminated and veinlet-disseminated Cu-Mo and Ag
mineralization associated with strong potash silicate
alteration zone, secondly, fine veinlet and veinlet
disseminated Cu mineralization, associated with potash
silicate and quartz sericite alteration; thirdlystock work or
fine vein Cu, Mo, Ag , Au mineralizationhosted in a
quartz sericitezone and an argillic alteration zone and
fourth, a final stage of supergene mineralization.
chalcopyrite, pyrite magnetite and secondly rutile, bornite,
chalcocite, covellite, hematite, as well as minor sphalerite,
galena, cuprite, limonite, digenite, molybedinite, joseite
and native gold etc, the gangue minerals mainly include
quartz, feldspar, mica, gypsum, epidote, actinolite, talc,
hornblend and zoiseite etc.
3 Alteration
Saindak alteration zone is composed of three, typical
porphyry copper ore hydrothermal alteration zones, which
are named as south, north and east tonalite porphyry
alteration zones, according to their distributions space.
From the point of view of their alteration type and
distribution, they have similar features and only slight

593
 ACTA GEOLOGICA SINICA (English Edition)
difference in distribution size. (Sillitoe1979)
The alteration zones in the Saindak area distributed in
an irregular girdle viewing in the plan, the order of
distribution from inward to outward is potassium silicate
alteration zone----sericitic alteration zone----porpylatic
alteration zone, while in the section of zones roughly
vertically cylindrical alteration zones in cemetery are
formed centered on potassium silicate alteration zone.
Gradual change relation from inward to outward transits
the various zones, centered on potassium silicate alteration
zone. The hydrothermal alteration was developed to
different extents both in rock masses and country rocks,
their major altered minerals are as follows: Propylatic
alteration zone mainly composed of chloride, carbonate
and Epidote, while Sericitic alteration composed of
Serecite, Quartz, Chloride and pellitic minerals and
potassium silicate mainly composed of secondary biotite
potash feldspar, quartz and minor sericite and
chloride.During hydrothermal alteration, the molybdenum
mineralization, copper mineralization, and pyritization
were associated in different extents, thus forming the
Saindak porphyry copper deposits dominated by above-
mentioned alteration zones.(John 1974)
4 Discussion
The Oligocene volcanic rocks in Saindak area show it is
typical of the continental margin arc.(Arthurton 1982)
Oligocene volcanism was calc-alkaline and fractionated
from an enriched sub-arc mantle source by partial melting.
(Rehan 2004)The arc collided with the Afghan block
during the latest Paleocene which converted to a
continental margin,and no pre-Cretaceous rocks formed in
thisarea. The Oligocene magmatism in the Chagai arc is
represented by andesitic volcaniclastics and minor
andesitic lava flows within the upper pyroclastic sequence
of the Amalaf formation, several large batholiths and
small barren and copper hosting granodiorite to tonalite
porphyry stocks are appear on the subsurface of the
batholiths (Jones 1961; Siddiqui, 1986). The Saindak
country rock alteration has a typical characteristic of
porphyry type copper alteration zone generally the
hydrothermal alteration trends from strong to weak from
inside to outside potassium silicate alteration zone -sericite
alteration zone-prophylactic alteration zone, which are
transmitted gradually between them thus a griddle zoning
is observed in the space. The altered source rock is
composed of tonalite porphyry and sandstone, shale of
Amalaf formation. The alteration zone is roughly centered
on tonalite porphyry mass (siltstone locally), exhibiting
594
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Vol. 88 Supp. 2 Aug. 2014
central girdle alteration.
5 Conclusion
The sainadak porphyry type Cu- Ag deposit has a
typical four alteration zones have different extents of
copper and gold mineralization that become weaker
gradually from potassium silicate alteration zone at the
center of alteration area to propylatic alteration zone.
Multiple stages of magmatism and porphyry type copper
mineralization have been identified by recent
studies.Porphry Cu mineralization in the Chagai belt
dominated the post collisional regional events and may
have commenced soon after initial contact between the
indian plate and Eurasian plate. (Perello et al., 2008)
Acknowledgements
This study was supported financially by the
International Geoscience Program (ID: IGCP / SIDA 600),
the National Natural Science Foundation of China (ID:
41373049, U0933605, 40772067, 41302073).
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