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Los Condores - El Aguila Mine

Producer in San Luis, Argentina with commodities Tungsten, Bismuth
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Host and associated rocks
  7. Nearby scientific data
  8. Geologic structures
  9. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  10. Ownership information
  11. Production statistics
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10106696
MRDS ID DE00314
Record type Site
Current site name Los Condores - El Aguila Mine
Alternate or previous names Aguila-Condores

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -65.26603, -32.71411 (WGS84)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

San Luis(province)

Argentina(country)

South America(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country State
Argentina San Luis

Comments on the location information

  • LOCATED 12 KM WSW OF CONCARAN, IN THE 550 M HIGH SIERRA DE SAN LUIS. IT IS CLOSE TO THE PROVINCIAL BOUNDARY WITH CORDOBA PROVINCE.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Tungsten Critical Primary
Bismuth Critical Primary

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss

Nearby scientific data

(1) -65.26603, -32.71411
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Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Quartz Veins Cutting Precambrian Schist And Gneiss

Comments on the geologic information

  • MAJOR POST-ORE GEOLOGIC EVENT: FAULTING. PRINCIPAL MINERAL ASSEMBLAGES: QRTZ + FRBR + SCLT + PYRT + MLBD + BSMN + TRML. TWO PRINCIPAL VEIN SYSTEMS, THE CONDORES, WITH AN OVERALL WIDTH OF 18 M AND LENGTH IN EXCESS OF 1,400 M AND THE AGUILA, WITH VEINLETS OF UP TO 0.25 M IN WIDTH. THE LATTER CUTS THE CONDORES SYSTEM AT DEPTH. WOLFRAMITE AND LESSER AMOUNTS OF SCHEELITE OCCUR IN CLUSTERS AND LOCALLY RICH POCKETS IN LARGE QUARTZ VEINS UP TO 2 M WIDE (CONDORES) AND 800 M LONG (WRIGHT, C.W., 1940,).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Significant No
Discovery year 1897
Year of first production 1897

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Sociedad Minera Argentina (Sominar) S.A.

Production statistics

  • Year 1918
    Period 1897?-1918
    Material CON W
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^70% Wo3
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    WO3 Conc. Tungsten Tungsten 70wt-pct
  • Year 1949
    Period 1939-1949
    Material CON W
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^66-72% Wo3
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    WO3 Conc. Tungsten Tungsten 69wt-pct
  • Year 1960
    Period 1951-1960
    Material CON W
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^66-71% Wo3
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    WO3 Conc. Tungsten Tungsten 69wt-pct
  • Year 1963
    Period 1961-1963
    Material CON W
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^66%(?) Wo3
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    WO3 Conc. Tungsten Tungsten 66wt-pct
  • Year 1979
    Period 1965-1979
    Material CON W
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^66% Wo3 (Est.)
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    WO3 Conc. Tungsten Tungsten 66wt-pct

Comments on the production information

  • CUM ITEMS 1-4: LOS CONDORES MINE ONLY. THE LOS CONDORES WAS THE LARGEST MINE IN ARGENTINA. PRIOR TO 1956, 4 VEINS 1 TO 7 FEET THICK HAD BEEN DEVELOPED ALONG STRIKE FOR LENGTHS UP TO 2,600 FEET AND TO A MAXIMUM DEPTH OF 750 FEET. THE AVERAGE CONTENT OF WO3 WAS ABOUT 0.5% AND THE RATIO OF WOLFRAMITE TO SCHEELITE 3:2 (UNITED STATES, DEPT. OF COMMERCE, 1956, P. 11-15). CUM ITEM 5: ALL MINES IN PROVINCE OF SAN LUIS.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ITEM 1: EL AGUILA; ITEM 2: LOS CONDORES

Comments on development

  • ACTIVE DEVELOPMENT IN MINE: EVALUATION OF TAILINGS (1985). ACTIVE EXPLORATION IN DISTRICT: YES. CERRO EL MORRO AREA. LOS CONDORES PRODUCED SCHEELITE AND WOLFRAMITE IN A 1:1 PROPORTION.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    KNOX, N.B., 1945, TUNGSTEN DEPOSITS AND MINING CONDITIONS IN ARGENTINA, ENGINEERING AND MINING JOURNAL, VOL. 146, NO. 6, JUNE 1945, P. 90-93.

  • Deposit

    WILLIG, C.D., AND DELGADO, J., 1985, SOUTH AMERICA AS A SOURCE OF TUNGSTEN, PRIMARY TUNGSTEN ASSOCIATION, PAPER PRESENTED AT 3RD INTERNATIONAL TUNGSTEN SYMPOSIUM, MADRID, SPAIN, 36 P.

  • Deposit

    WRIGHT, C.W., 1940, MINERAL RESOURCES, PRODUCTION AND TRADE OF ARGENTINA, U.S. BUREAU OF MINES, FOREIGN MINERALS QUARTERLY, VOL. 3, NO. 3, JULY 1940, P. 26-27.

  • Deposit

    BUNDESANSTALT FUR GEOWISSENSCHAFTEN UND ROHSTOFFE, HANNOVER, 1975, ROHSTOFFEWIRTSCHAFTLICHE LANDERBERICHTE, VIX: ARGENTINIEN, P. 70.

  • Deposit

    PUTZER, H., 1976, METALLOGENETISCHE PROVINZEN IN SUDAMERIKA, STUTTGART, E., SCHWEIZERBART'SCHE VERLAGSBUCHHANDLUNG, P. 181-82.

  • Deposit

    UNITED STATES, DEPT. OF COMMERCE, BUSINESS AND DEFENSE SERVICES ADMINISTRATION, 1956, MATERIALS SURVEY: TUNGSTEN.

  • Deposit

    ANGELELLI, V., FERNANDEZ LIMA, J.C., HERRERA, A. AND ARISTARAIN, L., 1970, DESCRIPCION DEL MAPA METALOGENETICO DE LA REPUBLICA ARGENTINA: MINERALES METALIFEROS; ARGENTINA, MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA Y TRABAJO, SECRETARIO DE ESTADO DE MINERIA, DIRECCION NACIONAL DE GEOLOGIA Y MINERIA, ANALES XV, P. 162.

  • Deposit

    ARGENTINA, MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA, SECRETARIA DE ESTADO DE MINERIA, SUBSECRETARIA TECNICA, DIRECCION NACIONAL DE ECONOMIA MINERA, ESTADISTICA MINERA DE LA REPUBLICA ARGENTINA, 1965-79.

  • Production

    CUM ITEMS 1-4:BUNDESANSTALT FUR GEOWISSENSCHAFTEN UND ROHSTOFFE, HANNOVER, 1975. CUM ITEM 5: ARGENTINA, MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA, SECRETARIA DE ESTADO DE MINERIA, 1965-1979.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-OCT-1985 Pasitschniak, Anna Geological Survey of Canada

Beyond USGS

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

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