Star Diamond Mine

Producer in Free State, South Africa with commodity Diamond
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. Host and associated rocks
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Geologic structures
  11. Ore body information
  12. Controls for ore emplacement
  13. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  14. Mining district
  15. Ownership information
  16. Workings at the site
  17. Links to other databases
  18. Bibliographic references
  19. General comments
  20. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10089198
MRDS ID W014761
Record type Site
Current site name Star Diamond Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: 26.80149, -28.3632 (WGS84)
Elevation 1372
Relative position 11 KILOMETERS NORTHWEST OF THE TOWN OF WINBURG

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Free State(province)

South Africa(country)

Africa(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country State
South Africa Free State

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Diamond Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Biotite Gangue
Garnet Gangue
Ilmenite Gangue
Phlogopite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) "Yellow Ground" Oxidized And Tuffaceous To Depth Of 20m

Analytical data

Result DIAMOND RECOVERIES AVERAGE ABOUT 0.479 CARATS PER TON OF ORE MINED. INDUSTRIAL DIAMONDS COMPRISE APPROXIMATELY 50 PERCENT OF RECOVERIES. GEM DIAMONDS MAKE UP THE REMAINDER

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Granite
    Rock unit name Star Kimberlite Dike;Melaphyre And Granite
    Rock description Star Kimberlite Dike;Melaphyre And Granite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Permian
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Ultramafic Intrusive Rock > Peridotite > Kimberlite
    Rock unit name Dwyka Tillite And Shale
    Rock description Dwyka Tillite And Shale

Nearby scientific data

(1) 26.80149, -28.3632

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Dike, Or Fissure, Occurrences Traceable On The Surface And Underground For Distances Of 10-15 Kilometers
Type of structure Local
Structure description Star Kimberlite Dike (Cretaceous); Dwyka Tillite & Shale (Karroo) (Paleozoic); Melaphyre And Granite (Precambrian)

Ore body information

  • General form LINEAR/VERTICAL
    Dip 90 - DEG
    Length 1500M
    Width 1.2M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Dike (Fissure) Of Volcanic Origin Filled With Micaceous Kimberlite.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Non-metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No

Mining district

District name Star Kimberlite Dike

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner New Witwatersrand Gold Exploration Co. Ltd.
  • Type Owner
    Owner Gold Fields Of South Africa Ltd.

Comments on the production information

  • STAR DIAMOND MINE TERMINATED PRODUCTION IN MARCH 1976. REASONS GIVEN WERE UNECONOMIC RECOVERIES AND FINANCIAL LOSSS. NEITHER ORE PRODUCTION NOR DIAMOND RECOVERIES ARE AVAILABLE FOR JANUARY-MARCH 1976

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 1500M
    Overall depth 500M

Comments on the workings information

  • THIS MINE CURRENTLY SCHEDULED FOR CLOSURE IN 1976. RISING MINING COSTS AND DEPLETION OF ORE RESERVES AT PRESENT MINING DEPTH CITED AS REASONS FOR PLANNED TERMINATION OF OPERATIONS.

Comments on development

  • MILL.CAP: 150,000 MET. TONS/YR 1960 ; ECON.COM: UNDERGROUND SHRINKAGE AND CUT-AND-FILL MINING METHODS USED. BLOCKED OUT ORE RESERVES NOW LIMITED. OPERATIONS SCHEDULED FOR TERMINATION IN 1976.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    MINERAL RESOURCES OF SOUTH-CENTRAL AFRICA; PELLETIER, R.A.; 1964

  • Deposit

    NEW WITWATERSRAND GOLD EXPLORATION COMPANY, LIMITED ANNUAL REPORTS, 1974-1975

  • Deposit

    NEW WITWATERSRAND GOLD EXPLORATION COMPANY, LIMITED, 1975, ANNUAL REPORT.

  • Production

    NEW WITWATERSRAND GOLD EXPLORATION COMPANY, LIMITED, ANNUAL REPORTS: 1973-1975 ; GOLD FIELDS OF SOUTH AFRICA ANNUAL REPORT 1976

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit TOTAL DEPTH OF (VERTICAL) DIKE NOT AVAILABLE.
Deposit INFORMATION MERGED FROM RECORD NUMBER W027328

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-1976 Sweetwood, Charles W. Department of State
Updater 01-AUG-1977 Sweetwood, Charles W. Department of State
Updater 01-AUG-1977 Sweetwood, Charles W. Department of State

Beyond USGS

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