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Serra Pelada

Producer in Para, Brazil with commodities Gold, Palladium
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Host and associated rocks
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Ore body information
  10. Controls for ore emplacement
  11. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  12. Mining district
  13. Ownership information
  14. Reserves and resources
  15. Workings at the site
  16. Links to other databases
  17. Bibliographic references
  18. General comments
  19. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10056500
MRDS ID TC00527
Record type Site
Current site name Serra Pelada

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -49.69912, -5.8981 (WGS84)
Location accuracy 1000(meters)
Relative position 90 KM SW OF MARABA; 60 KM E OF N4E IRON ORE DEPOSIT, Est By Cesar (1984)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Para(province)

Brazil(country)

South America(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country State
Brazil Para

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Palladium Critical Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • IN 1980 NUGGETS WEIGHING 4.5, 6.5, AND 7.4 KG WERE DISCOVERED.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Pyrite Ore
Chlorite Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Ilmenite Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Mica Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock
    Rock unit name Rio Fresco Formation;Rio Fresco Formation
    Rock description Rio Fresco Formation;Rio Fresco Formation
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Shale
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Siltstone

Nearby scientific data

(1) -49.69912, -5.8981
ListMap

Economic information

Ore body information

  • Length 200M
    Width 100M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Shear Folding And Faulting Zones; Major Gold Concentrations In Gray Siltstone, Manganiferous Breccias, And Gray-Red Siltstone Interface.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant No
Discovery year 1980
Discoverer Garimpeiros
Year of first production 1980

Mining district

District name Carajas

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Garimpeiros
  • Type Owner
    Owner Cia Vale Do Rio Doce

Comments on the production information

  • GOLD PRODUCTION IN THE EARLY YEARS OF THE MINE REACHED 420,000 OZ/YR BUT BY 1989 HAD FALLEN TO 50,000 OZ/YR, MAINLY FROM THE DUMPS.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1985
    Total resources 20000000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Gold Au 10 g/mt Gold Major 1985
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1987
    Total resources 3000000kg commodity
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Gold Au 5 g/mt Gold Major 1987

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • OVER 20 T AU IN 1984.
  • TOTAL RESERVES

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Overall depth 150M

Comments on the workings information

  • LANDSLIDES A DANGER.

Comments on development

  • AREA WAS EXPLORED FOR MN AND FE IN THE 1970'S ; ECON.COM: 15,000 GARIMPEIROS IN 1990, OVER 40,000 AT ITS PEAK. MECHANIZED ALLUVIAL RECOVERY METHODS ARE USED. CVRD THINKS THAT NOT MORE THAN 40-50% OF THE GOLD WAS RECOVERED. A JAPANESE COMPANY IS SAID TO BE NEGOTIATING A DEAL FOR REPROCESSING OF TAILINGS AND TOESTABLISH AN UNDERGROUND OPERATION (1990).

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    TEIXEIRA, J.T., 1982, GEOLOGIA DO DEPOSITO DE OURO DE SERRA PELADA, IN SOCIEDADE BRASILEIRA DE GEOLOGIA NUCLEO NORTE, PROVINCIA MINERAL DE CARAJAS-PARA: ANEXO AOS ANAIS DO I SIMPOSIO DE GEOLOGIA DA AMAZONIA, 79-85.

  • Deposit

    SCHOBBENHAUS, CARLOS, AND OTHERS, COMP, 1984, GEOLOGIA DO BRASIL; TEXTO EXPLICATIVO DO MAPA GEOLOGICO DO BRASIL E DA AREA OCEANICA ADJACENTE INCLUINDO DEPOSITOS MINERAIS: DIVISAO DE GEOLOGIA E MINERALOGIA, 501.

  • Deposit

    BHASKARA RAP, A., 1989, METALLOGENY OF THE BRAZILLIAN AMAZON: GLOBAL TECTONICS AND METALLOGENY, V. 3, NOS. 2 A 3, P. 169-173.

  • Deposit

    MINING JOURNAL, 1989, CVRD'S GOLD STRATEGY: MINING JOURNAL, VOL. 313, NO. 8043, P. 343.

  • Deposit

    MINING JOURNAL, 1990, AMAZONIA-A FINAL FRONTIER: MINING JOURNAL, MARCH 1990, P. 237-239.

  • Deposit

    CALIFORNIA MINING JOURNAL, MARCH 1990, P. 21.

  • Deposit

    MINING MAGAZINE, JANUARY 1987, P. 70.

  • Deposit

    DAYTON, S.H., AND SASSOS, M.P., 1985, CARAJAS; NEW DISTRICT, NEW MINES: ENGINEERING AND MINING JOURNAL, NOVEMBER 1985, 24-31.

  • Deposit

    CESAR, P. DE A.B., 1984, PRINCIPAIS DEPOSITOS MINERAIS: CONCEITOS, METODOLOGIA, E LISTAGEM, CAPITULO IX, IN GEOLOGIA DO BRASIL, EDS. C. SCHOBBENHAUS, D. DE A. CAMPOS, G.R. DERZE, AND H.E. ASMUS: DEPARTAMENTO NACIONAL DA PRODUCAO MI ERAL, PP. 359-419.

  • Other Database

    CIMRI

  • Production

    CALIFORNIA MINING JOURNAL, P. 21., CESAR (1984)

  • Reserve-Resource

    ENGINEERING AND MINING JOURL, NOVEMBER, 1985, P. 28., CESAR (1984)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit RECORD # TC30084 BY PATRICIA COVARRUBIAS (NORMAN J PAGE) HAS BEEN INCORPORATED INTO THIS RECORD. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-FEB-91 Bolm, Karen S. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-APR-92 Patricia Covarrubias (Norman J Page) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 22-SEP-94 Page, Norman J. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

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