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Greenvale

Producer in Queensland, Australia with commodities Nickel, Cobalt, Copper, Chromium, PGE, Zinc, Iron
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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. Alteration
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Ownership information
  16. Reserves and resources
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10079604
MRDS ID W029643
Record type Site
Current site name Greenvale

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: 144.98213, -18.91356 (WGS84)
Relative position CHARTERSTOWERS, ABOUT 175 KM NW OF TOWNSVILLE

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Queensland(province)

Australia(country)

Australia(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country State
Australia Queensland

Comments on the location information

  • THE PLANT IS LOCATED IN A 225 KM DISTANCE IN YABULA AT COAST

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Nickel Critical Primary
Cobalt Critical Primary
Copper Secondary
Chromium Critical Secondary
PGE Critical Tertiary
Zinc Critical Tertiary
Iron Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Goethite Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Serpentinization, Lateritization

Analytical data

Result TYPICAL ANALYTICAL DATA OF ORE SENT TO THE PLANT, A MIXTURE OF DIFFERENT ORE TYPES: 1.54% NI, 0.122% CO, 6.6% MG, 0.009% CU, 36.3% SIO2, 0.16% CA, 22.4% FE, 0.33% MN, 2.4% AL, 0.024% ZN, 0.8% CR. AVERAGE ANALYTICAL DATA: NI- 0.2% TO 0.25%
Result CO 0.01%, FE 7%.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 110
USGS model code 38a
Deposit model name Lateritic Ni

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Ultramafic Intrusive Rock > Peridotite
    Rock unit name Greenvale Serpentinite;Boiler Gully Complex
    Rock description Greenvale Serpentinite;Boiler Gully Complex
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Devonian

Nearby scientific data

(1) 144.98213, -18.91356
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description Burdekin River Fault Zone

Ore body information

  • General form BLANKET
    Thickness 20M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Zone Of Nickel Enrichment Has An Average Thickness Of 8 M, With Local Development To 20 M. It Lies Under A Cover Of About 6 M Of Ferruginous Overburden Containing Less Than 1% Ni.

Comments on the geologic information

  • THE OREBODY IS A TYPICAL LATERITE DEPOSIT, WITH NICKEL AND COBALT OCCURRING AS BOTH OXIDES AND SILICATES IN A SURFACE CRUST OF WEATHERED ROCK. THE TROPICAL WEATHERING HAS LED TO SECONDARY ENRICHMENT OF NICKEL, COBALT, AND IRON IN A NEAR SURFACE WEATHERED LAYER. THE OREBODY CAN BE DIVIDED INTO THREE MORE OR LESS DISTINCT LITHOLOGICAL ORE TYPES: 1) LIMONITE ORE, LOWER IN NICKEL BUT WITH MOST OF THE COBALT, AMOUNTS TO APPROXIMATELY 10% OF THE OREBODY; 2) SILICEOUS ORE, HIGHER IN NICKEL, AMOUNTS TO APPROXIMATELY 30% OF THE OREBODY; 3) BALANCE OF THE ORE IS WEATHERED SERPENTINE, IN WHICH THE NICKEL CONTENT IS DEPOSIT AVERAGE AND THE COBALT CONTENT IS RELATIVELY LOW.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No
Discovery year 1967
Discoverer Bureau Of Min. Recources And Queensland Geological Survey
Year of first production 1974

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Metals Exploration N. L.
    Interest 50
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Freeport Queensland Nickel
    Interest 50

Comments on the production information

  • OVERBURDEN REMOVAL AT A RATE OF 1.5MILLION M2 PER YEAR; DESIGNED CAPACITY IS 23,000 TPY NICKEL AS 90 % NICKEL OXIDE SINTER, PLUS 3,750 TPY NICKEL AND 1,375 TPY COBALT AS A NICKEL-COBALT SULFIDE. THE COMPANY HAS A LONG-TERM CONTRACT TO SUPPLY NI-CO-SULFIDE (A BYPRODUCT OF THE PROCESS)TO JAPAN.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1957
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Nickel Ni 0.5 wt-pct Nickel Major 1957
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1973
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Nickel Ni 1.57 wt-pct Nickel Major 1973

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • H5) SPECIFIC GRAVITY (DRY) 1.2 TO 1.3 CALCULATION 85 LBS PER CB FEET WITH 1.57 % NI AND 0.12 % CO OVERBURDEN TO ORE RATIO 4 TO 1, MINING LOSSES ABOUT 5 %

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Area 330HA

Comments on the workings information

  • A SLICE-AND-FILL METHOD IS USED AND THE ORE IS STOCKPILED IN WINDROWS. THE COMPOSITION OF EACH STOCKPILE IS DETERMINED BY SAMPLING AND THE ORE IS REMOVED IN A SEQUENCE DESIGNED TO PRODUCE THE GRADE OF FEED REQUIRED BY THE REFINERY.

Comments on development

  • TOTAL$: 280 MIO A$ (MINE + RAILWAY + PLANT) ; ECON.COM: THE PROJECT IS TO SURVICE FURTHER GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE WILL BE NEEDED OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS THE PARTNERS IN VESTIGATE A $ 40 MILLION (M.B.12.77)

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    AUSTR. MINING, OCT. 1975, THE FIRST AUSTRALIAN LATERITIC NICKEL MINE

  • Deposit

    MINING MAGAZINE 7.75.P.9.

  • Deposit

    MINING MAGAZINE 12.73.P.504

  • Deposit

    U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 930-F; CROCKETT AND OTHERS, 1987)

  • Deposit

    FLETCHER AND COUPER, 1975, AUSTRALASIAN INST. OF MINING AND METALLURGY MONOGRAPH 5, P. 995-1001.

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR, 5/74, P. 37

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR., 4/74, P. 164.

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR., 6/73, P. 281.

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR., 1/73.

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR., 2/75, P. 127.

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR., 1/72, P. 87.

  • Deposit

    METALS WEEK SOURCEBOOK, 1/27/75.

  • Deposit

    ENGINEERING AND MINING JOURNAL, 1975, FEBRUARY, P. 127.

  • Deposit

    WYCHE, CHARLIE, 1972, THE MINERAL INDUSTRY OF AUSTRALIA: PREPRINT FOR 1972 BUREAU OF MINES MINERALS YEARBOOK, P. 16.

  • Deposit

    SKINNER, WALTER R., 1973, MINING INTERNATIONAL YEARBOOK, 1973-1974: LONDON, FINANCIAL TIMES, P. 225, 255.

  • Deposit

    BUREAU OF MINERAL RESOURCES, GEOLOGY, AND GEOPHYSICS, 1973, MINERAL REPORT NO. 2, NICKEL DEPOSITS; COMPILED BY J.A. INGRAM.

  • Other Database

    ISMI

  • Production

    D1-D4) AUSTR. MIN. IND., REVIEW 1975; D5) MINER, JUNE 14, 1976;

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit ANTICIPATED TOTAL INVESTMENT (IN 1974) WAS $315 MILLION. AS OF 11-87, THIS RECORD INCLUDES DATA FROM RECORD M047007 WHICH HAS BEEN DELETED FROM THE DATA BASE.
Deposit THICKNESS AVERAGES 8 M ALTHOUGH LOCAL DEVELOPMENT TO 20 M. OVERBURDERN IS 10 TO 15 M OF FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JAN-1978 Saam, Henning G. (Shaffer, Glenn L.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-MAR-1979 Saso, Jerri L. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

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